


Trial of the Light

by Onehand_Dram



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Canon-compliant Time Extension, Enemies to Not Enemies, F/F, Missing Scene, Nonbinary Character, Season 3 Spoilers, Sign Language, Signing Buddies, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-27
Updated: 2020-12-08
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:34:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 28,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21578413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Onehand_Dram/pseuds/Onehand_Dram
Summary: Amaya offered no resistance as she was shuffled back through the grand entryway by the elbows, without a doubt being returned to the imprisoning circle of hellfire.
Relationships: Amaya/Janai (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 208
Kudos: 1122





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath.

Amaya offered no resistance as she was shuffled back through the grand entryway by the elbows, without a doubt being returned to the imprisoning circle of hellfire.

The exhaustion of the trial left her weakened, entirely rendered defenseless. Her body trembled uncontrollably, chest heaving with shuddering breaths, legs threatening to give out with each guided step. The prolonged exposure of disorienting blindness had her temples aching with excruciating pain from eyes clenched shut, yet she was helpless to the stem the tears flowing down her cheeks.

She remembers flinching away from the light at its first assault, so desperate to escape the judgment. It wasn't until she had felt two hands grip her shoulders that she whipped her head to face them, only to be met with the warrior Sunfire elf of whom she had met blow-for-blow in each instance of combat. There had been the presence of sheer urgency in the crease of painted eyes to the split second where she focused on mouthed words that insisted, _"You have to look. If you want to live, you have to look into the light!"_

The graveness of the statement had her forcing her gaze back into the beam of unleashed sunlight, determination increasing tenfold as irises shrank into pinpoints, eyesight rapidly becoming extinguished. The pressure on her shoulders had disappeared and she was faced with overcoming the endeavor alone. As all of her senses began to be overwhelmed from the light's power, she willed the screams of her thoughts to keep her grounded.

She would live and be safely reunited with her nephews. Live and see Gren's jovial smile. Live and kneel once more on dampened stone to light remembrance candles for both Sarai and Harrow. She would live.

She lived, but would she be stripped of her eyesight forever?

Was that the Sunfire Queen's intent? To take away her sight, leaving her with the remaining senses of touch, taste, and smell? If she ever made it back across the molten rivers, how could she lead the Standing Battalion if deemed a liability? How could she protect what was left of her family?

The full force of the realization struck her gut with a monstrous blow and she began to weep, body quivering from soul-wrenching sobs.

Strong hands clasped above her elbows faltered in strength before tightening their grip as Amaya's movements became sluggish. Not a moment later, her legs crumpled underneath.

All movement ceased.

Her knees never struck the ground.

The elf positioned at her back had prevented her from falling and now shifted to snake an arm across her shoulder blades, pulling Amaya's weight towards their chest. The tug resulted in Amaya falling into them and the elf effectively took on the full weight of the human's broken body.

As the haze of fatigue began to creep ever closer, she felt her limp body be readjusted. The arm of the Sunfire elf had stayed its presence around her back but the other arm had moved swiftly, dipping to sweep Amaya's legs out from under her. 

Had she been of sounder mind, Amaya would have been impressed that the elf had cradled her in their arms. But still, her burdening thoughts echoed continuously, drowning out any others.

Her chin was met with the cold metallic surface of gilded spaulders, wet tear streaks giving little comfort in the coolness between flesh and metal, yet her temple was met with warmth radiating from soft skin.

Thoroughly spent from her mind spiraling into the fathoms of a future without sight, Amaya succumbed to the encompassing fog of darkness with a trembling sigh.

''''''''''

Janai paused in her movement as the Standing Battalion General fell limp in her arms with a breath that whispered against her chin, the woman's sweat-ridden brow slumping forward to rest in the crook of her neck.

Kazi regarded Janai with an intrigued gaze when she had swept the captive into a bridal carry but seeing now that Janai was still unmoving in the corridor, their brow furrowed with a concerned softness. "Is she...?"

"Be still, Kazi," Janai gently hushes, waiting attentively in the following silence for any sure signs of life. It's impossible to feel for a pulse with her arms occupied and the head tucked against her own proves to further limit visual assessment. After a worrying moment, she's relieved at another faint wisp of an exhale. "Fortunately, not unconscious," she discerns. "Just exhausted."

"Should we continue our way to the prisons?" they ask, voice just above a whisper with care as if the human would startle out of Janai's grasp like a frightened harvest mouse.

Janai mulls over the various options, torn between remaining impassive or acknowledging the small intrusive feeling of guilt that was beginning to bloom under her skin. Staying unattached would be the safest move; she could easily assert authority over the woman now that she'd assuredly been knocked down an arrogant peg or two. But on the other hand...a tooth worried at the inner flesh of her bottom lip.

She silently asks for forgiveness from her grandmothers before giving the interpreter her answer.

"No. You and I will take her to my own private quarters; her eyes need to be tended to from the ordeal. We'll be safe and away from any prying eyes there." She resumed the walk, clutching the woman more securely to her torso as Kazi fell into step beside her. "It will just be the three of us but I'll keep one of my trusted scouts at the end of the hall. After we enter, fetch water and cold compresses, as well as fresh poultices from the medical bay - I trust you'll identify the right one without assistance. Speak to no one of your task."

Kazi raised a closed fist to their chest. "As you command, Golden Knight."

It was quite a distance from Her Radiance's court to Janai's personal chambers as they opted to take halls and passageways less traveled. It was best to reduce the numbers of people wondering why they walked _away_ from prisons, not to them. Their journey was met without much incident except for a few aristocrats who dared to cast a curious glance in their direction, whereupon Janai sent them shrinking back with a well-practiced scowl.

Kazi strode forward to open the doors to Janai's quarters, disappearing with a muttered _I'll be as swift as possible_ soon after their superior and the unconscious woman had passed the through the entrance.

Janai made their way to the bed with utmost care, setting her down precariously against large cushioned pillows in fear that any jostling movements would shatter her suspended rest.

She intended to pull away and put space between them after the General's body eased out of her arms, but as she took a cursory glance... curiosity got the better of her. She took a moment to scan the details of the woman's face: The jagged slope of dark brown hair that swept down to cover an eye. A scattering of faint freckles under a light layer of dirt and ash. A prominent bloodwine scar that slashed across the right cheekbone. Sharp angles of a handsome jaw line.

It was just a short while ago that Janai had grasped that same jaw in her hand, pulling it to force the General to face her. She was met not with fear but instead unashamed impudence, even when the woman was clearly at a disadvantage and knelt at the feet of her captor. _The utter audacity._ The memory of it all has her lips wanting to twitch into a sneer.

Now look where that audacity had brought them.

Janai leaned forward a little further, noting a few spider web-thin scars that were scattered around the human's face. They were just a touch lighter than the already pale complexion but they were easy enough to detect. A distinctly raised and marred scar at the lip's lines suggested a history of being split open in fights, healing over itself repeatedly. Her lips were parted just slightly, the mouth relaxed in sleep.

Janai stood upright, chancing one final lingering gaze.

She could openly admit that the woman before her was undeniably attractive; she never could turn a blind eye to the fairer sex. But this person...she was so strikingly different than most women she had met.

Yet unlike those others, she had witnessed and experienced how this General fought: infuriatingly strategic actions, confidence behind each swing and bash, and damnably lithesome evasiveness. Those spoke of whispered cunning, fearsome strength, underlying beauty and practiced ease, but the sleek, predatory quality of her movements screamed danger.

And she was _irrefutably_ the most dangerous woman she’d ever crossed paths with.

Janai batted the thought away, only to be hounded by another that'd been hovering at the back of her mind:

_Enjoy your pet._

Janai understood it was meant to be a jibe, but in truth it was a cruel reduction of a fearsome combatant basking in freedom and power only to be diminished as captive, subject to the whims and follies of an authoritative hand.

But Janai would not reduce her to a play-thing.

This woman, Katolis' General of the Standing Battalion, was every bit her equal. That was begrudgingly proved time and time again in their fights. She proved it in her tactics: knowing when and where to strike, when to retreat, even when to sacrifice. Janai would admit that after every irritating skirmish...she was impressed. 

_And she was judged with a pure heart._ That in itself was another development she needed to think on. Perhaps, in the basest sense it meant-

A small thud at the entrance caught her attention.

Kazi slips quietly through the gap between ornate double doors, holding a small crate of medical supplies and a jug of water balanced in the crook of an arm.

Janai turns to them, grateful for the timely interruption. "Anyone give you trouble?" When Kazi answers with a simple _no, Golden Knight,_ she nods approvingly, her slender fingers plucking the rolls of gauze from the crate once as the interpreter was settled in by her side.

"Then let us begin."

''''''''''

Amaya's consciousness came to, ebbing and flowing with the perception of her surroundings. Her hand twitched and brushed against soft material of a finely woven bed sheet. A small movement of her neck revealed her head was being cradled on a down pillow. Her forehead tensed in confusion; there was no heat of flame lashing at the exposed parts of her skin, no scorching stone tiles that promised to burn at flesh if she stayed in a singular spot for too long.

She briefly wondered if this was truly reality.

There was thick wet heaviness around her eyes and when she narrowed her brow, a familiar texture came to mind. She shot up to a sitting position in a panic with hands flying up to tear at the bandage covering her face, only to have her wrists caught and stayed in powerful grips. Her chest heaved with frantic breaths and she tried to swallow the panic down past into her gut, forcing herself to not rip away from the touch.

The grasp lessened in their pressure and brought Amaya's hands back down to lay on her lap, keeping them pressed into the sheets with a placating weight.

"Your eyesight has not yet recovered. We need you to be still," Janai advised, before realizing that her words would go unheard. She twisted at the waist to look over her left shoulder, calling loudly to where her other present company lounged sleepily on the couch. "Kazi, come here. I may need you to either interpret or assist in restraining her."

Janai eased off the pressure on the human, only to flinch when Amaya's hands rushed out from under palms and began to sign in quick succession. Her hands were shaking as they twisted, coming together and breaking apart in the air before losing speed to slowly come upward to touch the bandages that covered her eyes. The corners of her lips were tense with an unspoken worry.

Kazi rushed to Janai's side to slide into a nearby chair, breathing out, "She wants to know if she's blind, if that's what the gauze covering her eyes is for - if permanent loss of sight was the result of the Light's judgement." Kazi's hand came up to touch the rim of their pink-tinged glasses - a nervous tic. "How do I even begin to communicate if her eyes are covered?"

Janai took in the sight of the General's scarred hands, her mind churning with strategy. She reached out, stopping before just grazing Amaya's hands to see if the woman could sense it - and she did. The smallest of wrinkled lines crossed the captive's forehead as she sensed the emanating heat of raised limbs. _This could work,_ she thought, lightly brushing the backs of the woman's hands and gently grasping them to prevent startling her. _This needs to work._ She carefully pulled the hands towards the interpreter, watching the woman's face apprehensively for any signs of lashing out.

"I want you to answer her question. Short and simple, first. Make sure she knows she's not permanently blind." Janai took a breath to steel her own nerves. "Now prepare yourself - I want you to acquaint your hands with hers, and then you will begin to sign."

"I understand. I'm ready."

Kazi's hands reached forward as Janai began the transition, laying the captive's palms onto the linguist's hand with light coverage. Kazi pressed the pointer and middle fingers together side by side before tapping them down towards the thumb and repeated the motion, allowing the General to feel around the hand sign. 

_No._

Amaya's focus multiplied as she recognized this method of communication. Her back straightened, bodyweight shifting on the bed as she leaned closer.

Her hand trailed up to match, moving with the interpreter's as one of Kazi's hands came up to just under their jaw, forming the letter sign for 'A' with the thumb pad touching under the chin. Amaya followed as the hand sign moved down in an outward small arc to travel a few inches.

Kazi's wrist turned inwards and letter sign switched to a curved 'V', traveling upwards once more. The tips of the fingers tapped twice slowly on either side of their nose, again allowing for a pause to let the General feel the hand's meaning.

_Not blind._

The captive's tensed shoulders relaxed and a long, shaky breath was released. Creases and tensions on her forehead smoothed. This ailment would pass.

Kazi's free hand moved to tap the captive's unoccupied wrist, letting her know that a second hand would be used for the next set of words. Amaya shadowed her hand above the interpreter's in preparation for the next movement.

They then brought their hands to each shoulder with a grasping motion before the mirroring hands arced outward and down, the loose hands becoming upside down fists on either side of Kazi's waist.

The interpreter's hands became the letter signs for 'H', one letter crossed over the other. The top hand slid back and forth along the knuckles of the non-dominant hand's pointer finger; the bottom hand stayed still.

 _Heal._ _Soon._

One hand then moved independently, lifting off of Kazi's non-dominant hand. It pointed towards the bandaged woman, before evolving into the letter hand sign for 'C' and moved towards Kazi's lips in a short arc. 

_You drink._

Kazi's hands pulled away slowly from the General's. After the command, a glass seemingly materialized next to Amaya's wrist, the condensation of the glass a welcoming feeling. She nodded and accepted the object with one grasp, as the other hand came up in a relaxed fist beside her head. An index finger flicked up and held its position before coming down back to the drink.

_I understand._

Both Janai and Kazi shared a quick elated glance as the latter interpreted the sign's meaning.

Amaya contemplated in silence for a moment before placing the tall glass precariously between her lap, nestling it safely so that the contents wouldn't spill. She then began to sign, movements smooth and fluid, head tilting forward as if posing a question.

"Why was I spared? Why am I here, and not back in the fire ring?" Kazi's melodic voice spoke out.

"It's a complicated matter, but she'll be here for the time being until her eyesight returns," she says, waiting as Kazi repeated the signing process with the woman's hands. "We'll answer questions after the bandage is removed. For now, she needs to rest and let the poultice do its work."

As Kazi signed over the abbreviated message, Janai turned away from the pair only to catch her reflection on the tableside mirror. Raising two fingers to her face, Janai traced the small area where the golden painted lines were no longer defined and had blurred on her skin.

 _It must have happened when she had her head laying against my own,_ her mind recalled, remembering the feeling of the General's damp brow, how the woman's hair would brush and bump against her chin as they moved swiftly down the grand gilded hallways with a mindful quietness.

"She's asking how long the poultice will take to be effective," Kazi's voice breaks through. "Says that...she's grateful it smells pleasant and not like a skunk's... _oh._ Like a skunk's _rear_."

"I tell her to wait yet the questions still come," Janai sighs under her breath. Stubborn woman, indeed. "It may be a few hours for the poultice, half a day at the maximum," she relents, turning around to look at the communicating pair. "If this poultice should fail, we will try the process again with the stronger, _more foul_ medicines available. She should hope it does not come to that."

The given answer seems to satiate the woman's curiosity and she leans back against the pillows, drinking the last of the water before holding the emptied cup outward and allowing one of them to remove it from her grasp. With a signed _thank you,_ she nestles further into the bed's sheets and waits for the time to pass.

It wasn't long until Janai and Kazi heard the soft rumbles of snoring coming from the human.

"I am envious," Kazi remarks. "I wish I had the ability to sleep so quickly but my mind keeps me awake with the nature of my studies." They turned to Janai, noting that the Golden Knight's gaze was still affixed to the human laying in her bed. "What should we do now?"

"Now...we wait. You may utilize any space in this room to rest." Janai exhales, getting mentally prepared for the long evening ahead. "I will take the first watch."

''''''''''

Amaya's consciousness once again reached out as she came to, more gently this time. She took a long silent exhale before reaching up to touch the bandage's edge, anticipating a hand to snatch her tentative touch back down. Feeling no surprise physicalities, she removed the mostly dried bandage and deposited the item next to her side on the bed, keeping her eyes closed in the movement. 

A ghostly whisper came to memory. _Be brave, Amaya._ Her sister's words.

Another steadying breath.

She slowly opened her eyes, blinking away the grogginess of sleep. As blurred hues of gold and crimson swam into sight, she released the breath she had unknowingly been holding. Her thumb and forefinger grasped one of the edges of the bed sheets, marveling at the intricate designs of threaded details as her vision became clearer. 

A small movement snagged her attention and Amaya's gaze fell upon the slender elf trying to comfortably recline in an oversized chair adjacent to the bed, back facing her as they twisted their body in an unpleasant fashion. She noted they were busy scribbling down fast-paced notes in a small leather-bound journal, completely oblivious that their captive had awoken.

She braces her palms against the mattress, only realizing shifting around must have made a sound when the interpreter startles, squirming around to look at her with wide olive green eyes. Their mouth moves to breathe a quiet _oh my_ , sitting up properly before tucking away the journal to sign.

 _"The Golden Knight of Lux Aurea will be back momentarily, so I implore you to not...try anything that will delay any recovery in health or jeopardize your safety. Her exact words were 'don't do anything stupid'."_ The interpreter paused in their motions. _"Truthfully...I am not sure if that was meant more-so for you or myself. Has your eyesight returned in full?"_

Amaya answered the question with a nod while keeping the interpreter's gaze, reading their body language for any tell-tale signs. Their breathing was quick with eyes occasionally flicking to the door. Muscles pulled taut like a string, alert to any motion that might occur. Her fingers made quick work of signing, _"If you're worried about me attacking you...I won't. You've given me no reason to."_

She searches about the bedchambers for any sort of clue where the armored elf had gone, finding none except the still-steaming cup beside a small hardcover book. _They truly weren't lying about her being gone recently,_ she was pleased to note.

 _"I am not worried, but I do not doubt your warrior's strength even in your weakened state. If I was to be harmed...you would not last long there after."_ 'Foolish is the woman who knocks on Death's door twice' is the clear warning interlaced among the interpreter's words. _"And I was instructed to stay for the off-chance where you might have awoken - which you have - as she brings food and fresh water up from the kitchens. It has been some time since you were last awake,"_ Kazi signs, immediately becoming sheepish in admitting, _"We grew hungry in waiting."_

Amaya's eyes narrowed suspiciously. _"Why not have someone else retrieve it?"_

 _"Truthfully, General...it's because you are not supposed to be here, in this room. We were to take you back to the ring but you were in quite a state. It would have been impossible to keep you even mildly hydrated if you were imprisoned there. This is safer for your recovery in health,"_ they sign. _"You might have noticed you do not have additional guards; this is because you are under the Golden Knight's charge. She is more than capable of handling you if you were to...act inappropriately."_

Kazi continued, _"It is already a liability that you are here, but the risk would multiply greatly if more people were alerted to your presence. There may be individuals who wish to seek you out and try to take advantage of your weakened state,"_ they point out. _"If I may be succinct, General. We only wish for understanding and do not wish you any harm,"_ Kazi ended with a small reassuring smile.

Amaya's eyes pinned them down with a flash of dry criticism. _"You mean, no more harm than has already been done?"_ She relented when the interpreter dropped the smile, looking a touch nervous as they moved in their seat. _"I'm sorry. That was...unkind of me. You've been nothing but helpful, truly."_

They nod in understanding but the smile that returns is dimmed. _"I accept your apology, General."_

 _"Thank you also for...keeping my well-being in both of your thoughts,"_ she says. _"I will cooperate with you and your Golden Knight; albeit within reason."_ After a short pause, Amaya signed what had been truly plaguing her. _"What happened in the Sunfire Queen's court? I remember her calling for my disposal, but after she turned and went back to the throne, I couldn't decipher her lips from that distance. I just remember...the Light."_

Kazi stilled at the question, unsure of which parts to omit.

_"The Golden Knight advocated for you just after the Queen had called for the decision for you to be...disposed of. Her Radiance remarked that since you refused to cooperate and were deemed not useful - you were worthless. That your life was forfeit. But the Golden Knight insisted that even in your being as a human, you fought bravely and treated your enemy with warrior's honor._

_"And well...you know what came next. You passed the trial. Had you been found 'unworthy', you would have died - but not from the light emitted from the staff; that energy is meant to reveal one's true nature. Her Radiance would have ordered the Golden Knight to execute you right where you knelt."_

Amaya fixated on the hand sign for 'execute'. It was a sharp and brutal movement, much like a downward plunge of a sword into a body.

The confession of what might have happened drew a long breath from Amaya's chest. But she had passed the trial; she would not obsess on a death that had not been her then-future. 

The Golden Knight of Lux Aurea. Amaya was well acquainted with the statuesque Sunfire elf and her tactics in combat. The lengthy sunforged blade always reappeared by her side, no matter how many times she tried to rid the warrior of it. Her upper chest tensed at the memory of the blade, the ghost of molten metal searing through armor into flesh. She hadn't the opportunity yet to examine the scar too closely but she was damned sure it would never fade.

Amaya motioned for Kazi to continue, silently pleading with a tilt at the neck. She was genuinely curious of the aftermath.

 _"There's not too much afterwards, General. You pitched forward towards the ground and Her Radiance announced the culmination of the Light's judgment before allowing you to be removed from the court. The Golden Knight voiced thanks to her sister and Her Radiance called out to her to 'Enjoy your p--'"_ Kazi halted mid-sign for the word 'pet', realizing that they had recounted too much of the event. 

But the damage was done and Kazi knew that the General picked up on the hand sign.

 _"I know what that sign was."_ Amaya's back stiffened in confusion and her neck flushed with embarrassment. _"What do you mean, 'enjoy your pet'? 'Your' as in The Golden Knight? Do you mean to tell me that I am now her possession?"_

Kazi's eyes widened as their hands vehemently started to sign. _"No, no! I've said too much! Please, General, I--"_

 _"No! No, no, no. If you won't tell me, I will find out what it means myself when she returns,"_ she signs, sharp and threatening.

Kazi inhales a deep breath, knowing they were one limb into the grave no matter how they answered. 

_"Be rest assured that you are not relinquishing your status to be turned into some manner of...lady-in-waiting."_ Their skin darkened a shade as they signed the sentence. _"I am sure that Her Radiance was only teasing,"_ Kazi ended up offering.

Amaya was absolutely stunned. Her hands stilled with speechlessness for a lengthy amount of time before she tentatively prompted, _"...You never denied my status as a possession."_

 _"You are not a possession, General."_ Kazi adjusts their glasses frames with a finger, affixing the woman with a pensive look. _"It's far closer to 'responsibility', where your fate hangs on the precipice of how you behave."_

 _"Much like a pet,"_ she signs with a grimace. _"I see."_ Amaya thought back to the Golden Knight and her commanding presence. _"Is the Golden Knight title her only name?"_

_"It is not, but please understand that it is not mine to give."_

_"Irritatingly fair,"_ she replies. _"May I ask what name you go by?"_

 _"Now that, I may answer for you,"_ they laugh softly. _"My name is Kazi. Student of language, translation, and interpretation, with primary focuses in sign language across all cultures. It is a fascinating subject! I never would have dreamed I would have been employed in this capacity. I am most thankful for this opportunity to speak with you, General."_

 _"No, Kazi. Thank you. My extensive stay in your city would be all the worse without your skill."_ She regards them with a small kindness, appreciative that there were students of a signed language. _"My name is Amaya."_

Kazi inclined at the waist, bringing a palm to the flat of their chest before sitting upright once more.

 _"I am pleased to meet your acquaintance, General Amaya,"_ Kazi smiled warmly as they signed. _"If I may be as bold to say that I, for one, am glad that you are not dead. Perhaps when either myself and the Golden Knight of Lux Aurea are not interrogating you, you might graciously help me in furthering my studies in Katolian finguistics?"_

 _"'Finguistics'?"_ she finger spelled each letter individually with a perplexed look. 

_"Yes! It is a fitting name for it, no? I would not classify it as 'linguistic', even though the word is derived with a root in an ancient language meaning 'tongue'. We communicate with our hands."_ Kazi wiggled their eight fingers in emphasis.

Amaya leaned forward, the bed sheet further pooling around her waist. _"That actually is quite a fitting name,"_ she grinned, seeing the humor in such an odd word. _"So, Kazi. Would you say this is currently an interrogation?"_

_"Not in this moment."_

_"Alright. What questions did you have for me on Katolian 'finguistics'?"_ Amaya looked to Kazi with a mischievous smile before continuing to sign. _"Are you going to ask me about bad words? I have an extensive vocabulary."_

''''''''''

Janai tensed before rounding the corner of the hallway towards her bedchambers where both the General and the linguist stayed out of sight. Surely there would have been some commotion if there was trouble and she trusted her scout to respond appropriately if things had taken a violent turn. Regardless, she had to have faith that if she had been treated with warrior's honor, then the woman would not attempt to attack an unarmed and defenseless pupil of Lux Aurea.

____

She shouldered the entryway's golden doors wider, passing through the gap with the tray of food and an additional jug of water.

____

Her eyes immediately connected with the General's gaze, noting that she was _very much_ awake and mid-sign in conversation with the interpreter.

____

She crossed the expansive floor, covering the distance in long strides. "Kazi. Speak with me for a moment," she says, laying the platter onto the table beside the bed before turning to walk back to the study-area a little ways away for privacy. They followed obediently, awaiting Janai's next instruction.

____

"You are unhurt? Did she try anything while I was away?" She steps closer, eyes darting about Kazi's form looking for any detail that was out of place.

Kazi vehemently shakes their head, placating Janai's concern. "I am in perfect health and unharmed, thank you for your concern. Our conversations have been...exceptionally polite, truly."

____

Janai wants to scoff at the possibility of the human being 'polite'. She'll believe it when she sees it consecutively and unprompted. "Does she have more questions, or have they already been answered?"

____

"I would surmise that they have been mostly answered, yet I am unsure if she will have more questions for you, specifically. Of course, I am at your call no matter the hour and will provide you with apt interpretations." A darker hue crept up Kazi's neck. "Forgive me, I am rambling."

____

"Are you, now?" Janai gave Kazi a suspicious glance before letting it go, decidedly walking back to their additional company after a long moment.

____

"I see that your eyesight has returned. Any lingering blurriness or blind spots?" Janai asked, and Kazi in turn signed the words to the woman sitting propped up in the bed. "No? Good. Now eat and drink, the both of you," she instructed, glancing between them both.

____

Amaya regarded Janai with a steady intensive look, unblinking even as the plate of fine Xadian food was offered. After a moment, she broke the connection in order to examine the varying fruits, nuts, and slices of baked bread patterned in an impressive spread. Her arms rose from the covers, a flattened hand coming up to touch her chin before arcing down away in a gentle motion towards Janai. 

____

Amaya's eyes were soft, and that admittedly took Janai by surprise.

____

"You're...welcome. When you are done eating, you may use the washing room just over there," Janai motioned to a closed door. "We return to your cell afterwards."

____

Amaya nodded in understanding after Kazi's hands stilled, tracking the Golden Knight's trajectory with a keen eye as she walked away from them only to stop and sink into the armchair, resuming her reading and finishing her drink alone in peace.

____

____

''''''''''

____

____

Kazi created the open portal through the imprisonment's flame walls allowing Janai to lead Amaya back to the epicenter.

____

Amaya rubbed her wrists as soon as the shackles had been removed, stretching out her shoulders before she began to sign.

____

_"Kazi mentioned that your name was not one freely given."_ Amaya watched as the warrior regarded her with a wary curiosity. She paused, second guessing her next action but she swallowed the uncertainty and signed anyway. _"My name is Amaya. May I ask for yours?"_

__

Janai tested the name internally. _Amaya._ It suited her. "They would have been correct. My name is Janai, Golden Knight of Lux Aurea."

__

_"Janai."_ Amaya took the time in spelling each word individually, committing it to memory and enjoying the fluidity of the hand motion for signing the 'j'. _"Thank you for the medical care, as well as the food and water. The Xadian fruits are nothing like what we have across the Breach."_

__

Janai nodded once. "I am thankful that your eyesight returned quickly. Now, I have business that I must attend to. Kazi will continue your interrogation without my presence."

__

_"Until our next meeting, Janai."_ Amaya wants to smile at the narrowed glare Janai directs to her, knowing the woman is irked at the absence of the title. Her eyes glinted as she continued to sign, the blue and grey sleeves of her tunic swaying with sure movements. She smirked at Kazi, waiting for the interpreter to relay her message.

__

"Um. Oh my," Kazi breathed. They shifted uncomfortably under Janai's gaze, tongue thick with an unnamed expression.

__

"Well, what did she say?" Janai tilted her chin up, readying herself for what may come.

__

Kazi swallowed, cursing their momentary lapse in sanity earlier during their conversations with Amaya.

__

"She said that she hopes to see you soon," Kazi braced as they continued tentatively, "...because even a pet will need to be walked, fed, and...bathed...from time to time."

__

Janai's jaw dropped before immediately clenching as a furious heat spread like sunfire on her dark-skinned cheeks. She spun to shoot a glare at the interpreter who had finished verbally translating, now standing embarrassed and purposefully avoiding their superior's eyes. Her head whipped back to Amaya only to find a smirk plastered on the human's lips, clearly amused at Janai's expense.

__

Janai took a step into Amaya's space, her hand butting against the pommel of her sword. Amaya was unflinching even as Janai vehemently stated, "You are not my pet, you are my prisoner!" 

__

Her knight's cape snapped as she turned to angrily stalk towards the fire-ring's edge, quickly enabling her heat-invulnerable skin to walk through the barrier. It wasn't until she had arrived on the other side that Janai shouted, "We will speak of this later, Kazi! I would implore you to not continue in actions you will come to regret!"

__

She swept up the staircase without a second glance.

__

_Primal Sun strike me. Pure heart, my ass._

__


	2. Chapter 2

Kazi's jaw was dropped as both elf and human watched the Golden Knight of Lux Aurea phase through the flaming wall's barriers. The Sunfire elf flinched as Janai called out, "We will speak of this later, Kazi! I would implore you to not continue in actions you will come to regret!" 

A bead of sweat trickled down the back of their neck, a response not influenced by the imprisonment's walls. _Oh my._

They turned to glance back at Amaya, who had shifted from standing into a more relaxed position of sitting down cross-legged in the epicenter of the fire ring. The human's eyes shone with a strange intensity as she watched the retreating elf sweep up in the staircase in long strides. A ghost of a smug smirk was still present on her lips even after Janai had fully disappeared from view. 

A distant clang of a heavy iron door rang out, and Kazi was jolted from the thunderous sound.

_Ohhh my_. Kazi sighed, brows furrowed with a small crease of concern for their own well-being. They looked to Amaya, whose gaze was now looking right back at them - the human had a small amused smile but her eyes communicated a touch of contrition. A moment passed before the General began to sign.

_"You flinched shortly after Janai walked through the barrier_ ," Amaya noted with her head at a slight tilt, eyes alight with curiosity. _"Did she say something to you? Nothing too brash, I hope."_

Kazi half-smiled at Amaya's question and a slender finger rose up to adjust the bridge of their glasses a little higher. _"Only that we'd speak of it later and for myself not to continue in actions I might come to regret."_

Amaya rolled her eyes, a quick movement that Kazi almost didn't catch. _"Empty threat. She is full of hot air,"_ her hands iterated. _"Are you fearful for your position?"_

Kazi's fleeting downward look was revealed in the light, their despondency and worry all too easily noticed by Amaya's gaze.

Amaya's shoulders juddered softly with a silent chuckle. _"You have nothing to worry about, Kazi. She came to you in seeking your help in interpreting; I would wager my shield that no one is as proficient as you in your dedication of study in the signed languages."_ Amaya paused, before giving a reassuring ease in the steady cadence of her hand-signing. _"You're too much of a valuable asset and we all know it."_

Kazi's heart warmed at the compliment and the worry of being released from their appointment as interpreter unclenched its hold on their lungs. _"You're too kind, General Amaya. But I do suppose that is true."_

Amaya nodded at their affirmation and patted the stone floor, warm from the heat of the surrounding flames. _"Come, sit with me. I would offer you a chair, but I guess we'll have to make do."_

Kazi relented, a laugh bubbling from deep in their chest at the dry humor, sitting on the hard surface across from the human to mirror Amaya's position.

_"So, Kazi. How did you get involved with studying linguistics?"_ Amaya gave pause in their question when Kazi's lifted expression came plummeting once again. _"I...apologize, if I have offended you."_

The interpreter's hands rubbed at their thighs, smoothing out the fabric of their outfit. Kazi's eyes were crestfallen, pensive as if revisiting old and painful memories. It was a long delay before they signed a reply. 

_"You have nothing to apologize for, Amaya. There are some wounds that resist healing, even after years have passed_ ," Kazi's hand-signs and fingers plucked the chords to a mournful song, a requiem of lament.

Amaya's throat tightened, not expecting the answer. The wine-colored scar on her right cheek flared with a phantom pain, and her heart ached at the thought of her sister and the last memory she had of seeing her alive. 

Kazi's words rang true.

_"I am sorry. We could speak of other things, if you would like?"_

Kazi held Amaya's eyes, regarding the human with a soft sadness behind their rose tinted glasses. _"No. It might prove beneficial for us if we are to continue in our acquaintanceship. I might not reveal all aspects of my past with you, but I believe you should know a bit of it."_

_"What I am able to infer of my earlier upbringing is through bits and pieces of recollections from the older scholars._

_"I was born here in Lux Aurea, small, frail, and sickly. I am not knowledgeable of my birth parents; I was found abandoned as a newborn near the Palace steps under the cover of nightfall, swaddled in a modest blanket. It's been thought that maybe it was their best hope to ensure my survival. No one saw them, no one knows who they are._

_"The patrolling sentries at the Palace perimeter presented me to Sunfire Queen Aditi. Her Radiance took pity on the abandoned baby, bestowing a kindness by gifting me a name: 'Kazi'. A strong name for a weak newborn, with the foremost meanings for 'judge' and 'respect'. The Oracle of Light at the time was convinced that Sunfire Queen Aditi blessed me with the light-touched name; my physical ailments disappeared within weeks and I grew healthy over time._

_"I became a ward of the Palace. Sunfire Queen Aditi may have been the closest figure to a mother that I grew to cherish, but she was understandably preoccupied with matters of Lux Aurea and the politics of surrounding civilizations. I believe she knew my destiny before anyone else; Her Radiance asked the scholars and guardians of Lux Aurea's ancient knowledge to raise me in academic upbringing._

_"The towering, winding corridors of shelved tomes and scrolls became my home. I grew to know each bound book by name and unearthed their stories inked on aging pages. If there was an unfamiliar language, I would dedicate my time to learn it, to honor the enlightenment offered within its covers._

_"Although I was reared among scholars, I felt remarkably alone - there was no one my age that I truly connected with. I found my friends in histories and languages; The more I studied, the more I felt connected._

_"I grew up with the hope my parents would return to the Palace and claim me as their own. I believed that if they saw how accomplished I became in my studies, they would want me."_ Kazi scoffed, a bitter tang to the memory. _"They never did."_

_"The pain has lessened now, but...it still stings. It's of no matter, in the end. If they had not left me at the Palace steps, I would not have learned all that I have up to this point. I am pursuing languages that are not often recorded or as widespread in our cultures, and I hope to direct my energies into changing that fact."_

Kazi rubbed their fingers at their right temple, aiming to keep the incoming headache at bay for a little while longer. _"Forgive me, General Amaya. Thinking about the past has winded me and I should locate Janai for further instructions on what I should interrogate you on."_

Amaya regarded Kazi with a softened gaze. _"I do not fault you in the slightest. I understand. Thank you for parting your history with me."_ She briefly wondered if it would be inappropriate if she reached out a hand to comfort the interpreter.

_"Kazi. I am thankful that you pursued your passion for languages. I will admit that it's...rather comforting to be able to speak with someone so fluently, especially during my captivity here. I had a close friend, Commander Gren, who acted as my own interpreter in the Human Kingdoms_...," Amaya's hands stilled and a pang of sadness washed over her face. She continued, hand-signs slow and trembling, _"He probably thinks I'm dead with that stunt I pulled at The Breach."_

Kazi's heart felt for the General, all too familiar with the pain of uncertainty. 

_"I am truly regretful that I am not in the position to send a crow to your Commander, General Amaya."_ The interpreter paused, quietly observing the human's body language. Their resolve was steeled as they imparted the reassurance, _"Please take comfort in the knowledge Janai has divulged: "You have a stubborn chin as you openly defy Death". I am certain that Commander Gren has faith in the same sentiment."_

Amaya's chest shook with a muffled huff of a laugh, her eyes gaining a light of hope. _"I suppose that's true_ ," she signed, parroting Kazi's earlier statement. _"Thank you, Kazi."_

The Sunfire elf merely offered a gentle smile in response.

_"Before you go...did Janai truly say that about me? "You have a stubborn chin as you openly defy Death"?"_

Kazi grinned, the whites of their teeth illuminated in the fire's light. _"Oh yes, General Amaya. From the Golden Knight's recollection of your skirmishes, I theorize that Janai thinks rather highly of your 'stubborn chin'. She'll deny it if you were to confront her about the admission, of course."_

The interpreter took a moment to brush any dirt from their clothing and smooth out the wrinkles. _"I must depart from you for now until the next time we converse, General Amaya. I hope that you are able to get some manner rest in the mean time."_ Kazi inclined at their waist to give a polite bow.

Amaya dipped her head in acknowledgement, _"Thank you again, for everything. Until the next time, Kazi,"_ she signed, watching as the Sunfire elf gave a final smile before turning away to retreat into the opened portal. 

Now alone, Amaya laid on her back with head cushioned with her hands against the tiled floor, staring at the imprisonment's grand ceiling. Her thoughts revolved around the interpreter and the familial loss.

_Kazi truly is a remarkable individual._

''''''''''

Amaya's eyes snapped open and her heart pounded with a rush of adrenaline, feeling the presence of another in the imprisonment. She rolled from her curled position to face the entrance and her muscles tensed in protest at the sudden movement.

She was greeted with the regal figure of the Golden Knight of Lux Aurea, walking towards her with a hand resting with ease on the pommel of her sword. The armor's golden scales were flickering and luminous as they reflected the surrounding flames. 

A word surfaced at the tip of Amaya's mind: _Valkyrie_. She hummed a small acknowledgment at the word. 

That is what Janai's imposing stature reminded her of. Amaya would recite ancient tales to her soldiers, her most favored being of the Valkyries whose purpose was to descend upon the battlefield choosing only the most worthy of warriors to serve in a higher place after their deaths.

_Valkyrie, Chooser of the Slain._ It was beyond fitting for the Sunfire warrior - Janai had prevented her death by advocating warrior's honor to the Sunfire Queen. She chose to give the human, spitting at Death's feet, a renewed chance at life.

_It is because of her that I can continue to see my nephews prosper,_ Amaya noted with a heaviness in her heart. _I almost threw that chance away...because of my pride_. Her throat began to clench and she willed the pain away.

_I am indebted to her._

Janai drew closer to the captive, noting her distant look fogged in thought. The human almost seemed...reflective in sorrow. It was not one that the she would have associated with the General, full of blazing confidence and sharp wit.

Janai's previous expression of guarded annoyance ebbed into one of reluctant softness. She waited until Amaya's gaze cleared, who was now observing the Sunfire elf with a curious tilt of her head. 

"Kazi had insisted in coming here to continue interpreting for us, but I sent them to retire for the night. They are due some much needed rest." Amaya's look smoothed into one of approval, and she nodded as her hand languidly came up beside her temple to sign, _I understand._

"Will that be an issue in our communication?"

Amaya shook her head, her body relaxing despite the presence of her former enemy. She pointed to her chest before the hand transitioned into the letter shape for 'V', coming up and inward to the front of her mouth to move back and forth horizontally. Amaya ended her sentence by pointing to back to Janai, her eyes dipping to the Sunfire warrior's lips.

"Good." Janai was unsure what Amaya had signed past the shake of their head, but she understood that gesture well enough. Her hand reached behind her knight's cloak, producing a set of shackles that had been previously secured to her armor's belt. "Stand, General. We are heading back to my chambers --", she paused as Amaya's eyebrow lifted up in an amused _suggestive manner_ , "--so that you may eat," Janai rushed to finish, pinning Amaya with a stern look.

_By the Sun, I refuse to let her get under my skin again_ , Janai swore to herself. 

"No sudden movements and don't try anything that will cause me to harm you."

Amaya rose from the hard surface of the ground, affixing Janai with a roguish smirk. She took a moment to brush her hands of sediment on the fabric of her thighs before her arms raised to chest height. Her hands were swift in their signing, fully taking advantage of the situation of an individual not well versed in the language. 

_"Do you count signing as a 'sudden movement'?"_ Her eyes glinted with amusement as Janai's eyes narrowed, fully aware that Amaya was most likely being an ass. She looked down to the shackles in Janai's hands as her fingers undid their clasp. _"I am surprised you have chosen shackles instead of a leash for your 'pet'."_

Amaya's smile was much devious as it was radiant in the light, and she lowered her hands after her signed teasing, holding out her wrists together in front of her body in preparation for the shackles.

Janai's ears flushed with heat as she recognized the hand-sign for 'pet' from their previous encounter while Kazi had been present. Her fingers worked with haste at the shackles mechanisms so that her _prisoner_ would be momentarily silenced, finally clasping them around Amaya's wrists. She stepped back after making sure her prisoner was secured.

The silence didn't last long, as Amaya's hands came back to life and the human's insufferably handsome smile widened out of Janai's ire. 

The shackles chains chimed with the ringing of metal as Amaya continued to hand-sign the best she could in her situation, despite the restriction in her movement. _"I suppose I am grateful, though. May I ask your permission in bathing in your bedchamber's washing room after our dinner? I might be deaf, but I know that our sense of smell is still intact."_

Janai groaned and her eyes turned upwards to look at the cell's ceiling, silently pleading for the Sun's primal energy to strike her down. After a moment, she returned her gaze back to Amaya to fixate her with an exasperated expression. "You know I cannot understand you, human."

Amaya gave Janai a knowing look. _"Oh, I know. I'd also wager that not knowing what I'm signing is gnawing at you. Someday you might learn and then all my secrets will be scattered to the winds_ ," she signed, conscious she might look a little comical with her hands waving back and forth while chained. 

A conspiratorial look formed on Amaya's face, leaning forward towards a glowering Janai as if letting the elf in on a secret. _"Maybe this is all a ploy for me to get you to learn so we can talk and I can get to know you better, especially since you're cute_." Amaya's bound hands came up to her chin, but only one signed: the thumb extended outwards as the pointer and index fingers pinched together, curling inwards to brush her chin twice on the last word. 

Janai's irritation for the human was growing rapidly and her hand shot forward to still Amaya's own; her captive's eyes momentarily widened out of shock at the unexpected touch and her she allowed for her hands to be lowered back near her waist. Her warrior's crown caught the light as she leaned close to Amaya, the annoyance flashing briefly in her amber eyes. "Will you please still your hands for one _moment_ , Amaya?"

She hadn't meant for the human General's name to leave her lips; it just...tumbled out on its own accord. Janai felt the illusion of distance between captive and captor fracture and it left her experiencing an implacable feeling she couldn't quite place a finger on.

Amaya deflated from her antics, looking down at their gloved hands. She nodded, distracted. _She used my name?_ , a dazed thought crossed in her mind.

"Now let's _go_." Janai re-positioned her grip to lead Amaya by the elbow towards the wall of flame.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trial of the Light is no longer a 1/1.  
> *finger guns*
> 
> Splitting this chapter in half because it was a long one, so no worries. I'll post the next one once as I feel it's all good.
> 
> Thank you all again for the love and support - y'all are amazing.  
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter.


	3. Chapter 3

Their departure from Amaya's imprisonment held a different sense of purpose than the last - before, her heart was full of hellfire and stubbornness knowing that she would be cast to her knees in front of the Sunfire Queen. And now, with a renewed chance at life, Amaya’s outlook became open and full of curiosity. 

It was quite a distance from the unique cell to Janai's personal bedchambers; it became an opportunity Amaya deeply appreciated for a chance to stretch her legs to further soak in Lux Aurea's immense surroundings.

There truly was such a stark difference between this near fabled city of gold that was swathed in the coolness of the moon's light, and the damning rough earthen edges and tones of her post back at The Border. 

Firelight that was cast from torches and lines of fire pits embedded along the pathways stretched glowing tendrils across smooth spires and hanging cloth banners seemed...almost otherworldly. The shadows that followed both women's movements seemed to dance together before vanishing in between pillars. 

The air was fresh and vibrant, carrying with it the salty aroma of a near large body of water. Wisps of Amaya’s hairs caught in the gentle breeze as if brushed aside by an unseen finger, letting go to drag a cool whisper of air to the back of her neck.

The stone paths they tread boasted pristine golden edges that gleamed and the carved channels of water that flowed beside them shimmered in the moonlight.

Amaya was so deeply enthralled by the senses of her surroundings that she had missed Janai's numerous curious glances that flit towards her direction, only to follow the human’s gaze to take note in what Amaya was entranced by.

As the two women made way down winding walkways, the scattered residents that lingered the streets of Lux Aurea slowed in their actions to observe their Golden Knight and the human she had taken captive. Mixed reactions met them at every turn.

A few children would duck behind their respective parent’s bodies, peeking from behind a leg with awe that Janai was within sight. Another tried to break free from their guardian’s hold, eager to get a closer look. A merchant storing away the last of the evening’s goods at his stall had roughly scraped knuckles across his chin, eyes unblinking and narrowed with revulsion on the General. A wandering couple taking advantage of the night’s ambiance while up on the bridge’s arch gestured to the human’s shackles, huddling closer to without a doubt gossip.

All were in turn observed by Janai’s watchful eyes.

The closer they arrived to their destination, the civilians sporadic presence in the streets became replaced with strategically placed Sunfire guards. Greetings to their Golden Knight became more frequent by way of vocal callouts, sharp nods and clenched fists to chests. Almost every soldier the two women passed regarded the General of the Standing Battalion not with an air of disgust, but rather a muted gaze of respect.

Word of the Trial had certainly spread amongst Janai’s warriors, and she was interested to see that this was an effect.

''''

Janai pushed the towering golden doors open before leading Amaya inside to the familiar setting, letting go of the human's elbow to unshackle her wrists.

Amaya rubbed at where the shackles had held her only briefly before her eyes immediately darted to the grand selection of food precariously organized and plated on the living quarter's table. She stepped away from Janai, placating the woman's wary gaze with two outstretched hands that patted at the air softly. Ambling towards the desk in the designated study area to pick up a pad of paper and pen, she scrawled quickly before making way back to where Janai was standing.

She presented the notepad to the elven warrior, a playful glint to her eye and Janai slowly plucked the pad from Amaya's grasp. A swift glance at the remarkably neat and legible writing sent the smallest blush flaring at the tips of her ears.

_May I bathe in the washroom, before eating? I promise to behave. You can even stand guard next to the door if it will ease your mind._

Janai re-examined the scrawl, taking the extra moment to suppress the furthering spread of sunfire across her face. She handed the notepad back to Amaya, purposefully avoiding the human's gaze yet very aware that the woman was watching her lips for a response.

"You may be a prisoner of Lux Aurea, but we are not...barbarians. You may use the washroom." Janai strode forward from the door but kept Amaya in front of her, noting their height difference in a passing thought. "I will set aside a fresh set of clothing for you. Use it if you wish."

Amaya's eyes lit up, the approval at Janai's decision clear on her sweat and dirt streaked face. The pen in her hand set back to the paper, swaying with the strokes before being handed over to Janai. 

_I won’t be too long._

She broke away from Janai’s presence, making her way to the other side of the bedchamber before slipping through the washroom’s door.

Amaya paced excitedly towards the large washing basin, its tremendous magnitude in size not lost on her. It truly was a marvel, a royal feat in its grandeur; although the enamel and resin bathtub was recessed to only protrude at a modest height above the smooth stone floor, it was deep enough to encompass her body and the length was nearly double her height. 

_This could have fooled me for an ornamental water feature, it's so grand._ She knelt to dip a hand down into the already filled basin - Amaya's body tingled at the euphoric sensation of perfectly warmed water as it swirled around her fingertips. _Better than the tepid washing basins at the Standing Battalion’s post close to The Border._

A miniscule movement caught her eye - the closed entrance to the washroom cracked open, and folded up garments were placed on a small shelf next to the door's frame before once again shutting. Amaya immediately noticed the scrap of paper precariously balanced on the top of the folded clothing and curiosity got the better of her.

She rose from her knee and padded the small distance towards the shelf, plucking the note up with her thumb and forefinger to study the handwriting inked into the surface.

_I hope these will suffice. There are spare underclothing provided in the folds of the tunic. Once you have changed, deposit your soiled clothing in the laundry receptacle at the corner of the washroom. It will be cleansed and returned to you._

Amaya's lips curved into a small grin. _Perks of being a pet?_ She undressed quickly before chucking her bundled clothing into the designated basket, not wanting to waste another moment.

As she dipped her battle scarred body past the perfumed water's surface, she could not restrain the prolonged appreciative groan that rose from her chest.

_Fuck me, that feels good._

''''

The Sunfire elf had only just relocated back into the bedchamber’s main area to pace the floor, contemplating best practices on how to interrogate an unshackled prisoner over dinner…until she heard a particularly _unique_ sound.

Janai’s neck had almost snapped from the velocity of turning towards the muffled noise that had filtered through the washroom’s door, her hand slapping onto the nearest surface to brace balance as an ankle threatened to roll out from under her.

_Was that…?_

Her heart hammered as she stood unmoving, daring not to take a breath in case she’d miss its second coming. When the following minutes passed without another suspicious sound, she relented into passing the time while waiting for Amaya to be finished. Who knew how long that could take...she was well aware of how extravagant the washroom could be after a long and arduous day.

She was surely proven correct.

Janai sensed Amaya’s _eventual_ yet quiet arrival back into the main area of the bedchamber, her focus sharpening as the distinct aroma of citrus wafted through the room with dissipating clouds of mist. It was almost a marvel that the opening of the washroom’s door and the human’s subsequent footsteps were soundless; the latter was surely a testament to the Amaya’s strength and inherent awareness of her own body’s movement.

The thought was tucked away into an ever-increasing list of observations.

She placed the leather-bound tome that she had been browsing back onto the shelf by neatly slotting it into the vacant space among its kin, pushing a slender tip along the spine to match the others. The brush of leather material whispering against the metallic shelving mimicked her soft exhalation of breath, using the moment to steady any tension in her veins before turning around to acknowledge Amaya’s arrival.

The woman at the forefront of Janai’s attention had indeed dressed into the provided cuffed gi training pants and a soft linen tunic. Amaya’s hair was damp, clumped together and tousled from towel drying, her pale complexion once again vigorously scrubbed pink to be cleansed of dirt and sweat. 

_She’s a fair bit paler than I recall. Truly the wonders of a proper bath._

Janai’s mind flashed to the memory of leaning over Amaya’s unconscious body, remembering the numerous scars that were mapped over her face. Those faint lines were surely more noticeable now that they were unobscured.

“You were occupied in there for quite some time,” Janai remarked, taking a quick glance at the window - it was far darker outside than the period when they had arrived. She inhaled deeply, the notes of citrus leaving a pleasant tang in air. “I can only hope that you found the bath to be satisfactory. Do I need to replace all my soaps and perfumes?

Amaya looked to the side, an impish curl of a grin appeared on her lips even though she was being casually admonished.

With a sweep of her lithe arm, still covered in her knight’s vambrace, Janai motioned for Amaya to take a seat. It was only after that both women had reconvened to sit across from one other that an agreeable silence resting in the air around them.

Amaya jotted down a note on the pad before laying the pen across its surface and sliding it to face Janai. Eyebrows lifted as she gestured with a short dip of her head for Janai to read from it.

_Thank you for your patience. And yes, that may be a possibility. Royal treatment in a royal’s bath._

Janai merely replied with a lift to her chin, focus narrowing at the scrawl that greeted her before her gaze darted to the human - the distinct crinkles at the corners of Amaya’s eyes let her know it was _indeed_ a joke. Thank the Sun...those cleansers were hard to come by and specially crafted. She released a quiet hum.

When the moment had passed, they spent the following minutes preparing their respective meals; Amaya chose only to drink the provided water and selected a dish similar to the one she had had previously when she was recovering after the Trial. Janai merely chose to bring her personal gaiwan tea set closer to her side of the table, plucking a handleless earthen cup with its matching lid and a small container of dried tea leaves from the box.

There was a comfortable hush between them despite their history; a mutual truce without a need to fight or defend. Fifteen minutes into their dinner, there was finally a break in the silence with Amaya scribbling onto the pad before pushing it along the table’s surface.

_I’ve noticed you’ve only sipped from your tea, despite having quite the spread in between us. Should I be worried that the food has been tampered with?_

“It’s quite late in the evening,” Janai reasoned. “I prefer to contemplate the day’s events on a settled stomach.”

_Dodging my question, I see. So...poison? Or have you imbued a magicked truth serum as a honey glaze onto the crust of this bread?_

As if gauging Janai’s reading pace, Amaya gestured to the portion of bread she held in her hand by waving it about in a lazy gesture before tearing a chunk off to consume it.

Janai smoothly lifted the earthenware cup to her lips to hide a huff of amusement, lips resting on the lacquered edge before taking another pull of tea. She held Amaya’s gaze only for a prolonged moment, even as she raised an elegant eyebrow to say, “I suppose you’ll just have to wait and find out.”

A roll of the eyes was her response as Amaya reached across the small distance to jot down another line, nonchalantly brushing the crumbs away from the notepad. She flipped it back towards Janai, scooting it across the table with the tips of her fingers.

_You might as well take advantage of my state before I die from either slow-acting poison or embarrassment. But tell me, are all political prisoners of Lux Aurea treated to dinner?_

Janai ran a fingertip along the teacup’s lid, tracing the painted designs as her second cup continued to steep. “Yes. Prisoners of political stature are fed adequately, unless there are peculiar circumstances that would affect that routine.”

Amaya simply offered an impassive look, pausing before taking hold of the notepad once more.

_*Treated to dinner in your bedchamber._

Janai’s eyes skimmed the writing, feeling the blush on her chest bloom underneath the chestplate. She deemed it quite successful when she kept the second-hand nature of wanting to throttle her dinner _guest_ at bay. Janai removed the lid, looking to Amaya with a withered gaze. “Tell me. Were you born insufferable, or was it a learned trait?”

To this, Amaya beamed.

_Born that way. What blend of tea are you drinking?_

“Black.” A barely-there smile curved at the corner of Janai’s lips as both women glanced to the tea cup that rested idly on the table. The color of the liquid that swirled was most certainly _not_ a dark color, but rather an exceptionally delicate pale pink hue.

Amaya lazily raised an eyebrow, as if to say, _really, now?_ The notepad was flipped to a fresh page. 

_My nephews are fond of playing a game where you can ask a set of questions to get to know the other person better. Are you familiar with the concept?_

Janai nodded, a spark of eagerness thrumming beneath her skin. “I’ll begin. What were your human soldiers doing on the Xadian side of the border?” She sipped her tea, stealthily leaning forward on the edge of her seat as if awaiting Amaya’s answer. It was a short minute before the paper came to face her.

_Pass. Not familiar with the concept, then. Maybe we can try again at our next dinner? This questioning is going terribly disastrous, ‘Interrogator’ Janai._

Janai affixed the woman across from her with a deadpan stare. “I’m sure you’re well aware that you are an equally terrible captive.”

Amaya’s shoulders shook with a silent guffaw.

_Let the records show that I never broke under questioning._

''''''''''

Janai returned to her bedchambers alone and sighed into the empty space. The air was mildly humid yet calm, carrying the scent of sea salt, honey, and citrus. The aromas were near tangible remnants of the human who had bathed in the washroom just earlier. 

She breathed the scent in deeply as she walked along the smooth and polished stone of the floor, carefully removing her Sunfire warrior's crown to be placed delicately on a stand next to the desk.

In her movement to stride towards her wardrobe, the notepad that had spent a fair amount of time being passed back and forth between them caught her eye. It was in a different angle than how she had placed it shortly before accompanying Amaya back down to the cell. 

_Did she write something new while I wasn't looking...?_

Her perception proved true as she leaned to get a closer look. 

Janai focused on the General's last jotted note, the handwriting tall and thin with a defining characteristic of a slant. She rested her hip at the table's edge to take a private moment in admiring the penmanship.

_Janai,_

_Thank you for the evening meal and for allowing me a decent bath, as well as permitting me a fresh set of laundered clothing to borrow. It was a welcomed and gracious gesture._

_I am also pleased to note that the food has in fact been truth serum-free; however, I have yet to deduce if it was null of poison. Only time will tell._

_In the event I should face Death after closing my eyes, do know that it was rather refreshing being in your company without fear of a blade at my throat. My last parting request would be for you to spare Kazi - I’ve grown quite fond of them._

_Your captive,_  
_Amaya_

She resisted rolling her eyes at the human's chosen sign-off and instead traced the message with a fingertip, slowing at the end to drag the digit across Amaya's signed name. Her eyes lingered far too long on the curved swoops and sharp angles of the lettering.

Janai's gaze fell from the note, breaking the deepening entrancement in thought.

_Hm._

Janai forced the brief fluttering heat in her chest down, silently wishing the warmth of the small flame would extinguish. She could only hope that sleep would find her easily and mercifully that night.

''''''''''

Even upon waking in the new day before the Sun’s ascension, Janai's thoughts revolved around Amaya's hand-signs from their admittedly one-sided conversation in the imprisonment's cell. It was a constant buzz in her ear; curiosity had taken root at the corners of her mind, the recognition of not truly understanding Amaya’s language settled uncomfortably in her chest.

As she waited for her guest’s arrival, her thumb absently brushed over the notepad that held Amaya's script from the previous night. It wasn’t too long before the tentative knocks caught her attention.

Kazi entered Janai's bedchambers after a brief pause, coming to stand by the table in the living quarters with a fist pressed against their chest in greeting. 

"Thank you for the reprieve, Janai. I feel most refreshed after the opportunity to rest."

"I am glad to hear of that, Kazi. May I offer you any water?" At Kazi's nod and a soft vocal assent, Janai made way to the table to procure two glasses.

"How was your earlier interaction with General Amaya? Were there any complications in communication?" Kazi asked with curiosity evident in their voice. They murmured a quiet thank you as they accepted the extended glass, running a finger around the rim as they briefly imagined what possibly could have happened between the two women.

Janai hummed in remembrance of the night’s events as she sat down on the plush accompanying chair, motioning for Kazi to do the same. “She would write on a pad of paper and I would respond vocally so that she may read from my lips...to which I am now acknowledging may be crude, easily misread, and rather discourteous.” 

The flecks of golden ink crinkled around her eyes, chest flinching as a freezing thread-like worry wound itself around her lungs. Perhaps that was to be considered bad form.

"I'm entirely positive that she's taking advantage of my ineptitude in the language," she spoke without bite. Janai lifted her drink to her lips, mind revolving around opportunities for further communication with the General. 

Kazi took a seat across from Janai, watching their superior's face intently. "Taking...advantage?"

"Yes. And I want to eliminate that possibility." Janai's ornamental gold bands around her horns glinted in the light of a nearby wall sconce as she came to her decision. "I would like to learn Katolian sign language from you, Kazi."

Kazi's eyebrows threatened to shoot up to their hairline in mild shock, not expecting the assertion of Janai wanting to learn so soon. An opportunity to teach Katolian sign language in a professional manner, outside of their collegiate circle? Their heart swelled with elation. 

"I am honored at your request and that you have chosen me as your instructor, Janai. I will be made available at any point you wish to begin your lessons."

"I am relieved to hear your acceptance in your additional role." Janai offered a genial smile, laced with gratitude. "You will be appropriately compensated for your extra time, of course. Additionally, you may have your choice of one of the palace's unused guest rooms to turn into either a secondary sleeping quarters or a study for the duration of your time interpreting and as a teacher."

Kazi's jaw threatened to drop. "Janai, that's too generous of an offer, however I am truly humbled for this opportunity." Their eyes watered as they bit back a wave of overwhelming emotion.

"It's the least of things that I could offer you, Kazi. You already spend your waking moments either by my side, the General's, or in assisting us both. I would prefer that you are given accommodations that will aid you in your tasks."

"I admit...it would help in my efficiency...," Kazi trailed off, the reflection of their rounded glasses catching the light as they regarded the Sunfire warrior warmly.

"It's settled then." Janai raised her glass to toast the interpreter, an earnest grin spread on her golden-painted cheeks. "May the Sun imbue you with its Light as we tread this path in camaraderie."

Kazi lifted their glass in response. "May the Sun's Light impart its wisdom upon you as you walk the path of enlightenment."

They simultaneously sipped from their drinks, sealing the invocation. The pair sat in silence with a comfortable ease before Janai finally voiced what had been on her mind for the past couple of hours. 

"Kazi. Would you be able to translate a few hand-signs for me?"

"Of course. Would you prefer to describe it or mimic the movement to the best of your memory?" 

Kazi drank from their glass as they waited expectantly. They could only wonder what Amaya might have been bold enough to sign, knowing that Janai was not a student of the visual language.

"From her body language, I can surmise that it was not a request," Janai spoke as she completed the first sign flawlessly. "I am aware that that hand-sign means 'you', but the following is escaping my grasp." 

A singular hand rose to her face - the thumb extended outwards as the pointer and secondary longer finger pinched together, curling inwards to brush her chin twice.

Kazi choked on their water at the hand-sign, immediately bringing their free arm upwards to provide a polite barrier before continuously coughing into the crook of their arm.

Janai looked towards the interpreter with a concern, plucking the glass from their grasp to fill it with more water if it was needed. "Will you be well, Kazi?"

The interpreter in question nodded vehemently into their arm, chest aching and skin discoloring red from the physical exertion. _Oh my._ A minute passed between them, and Kazi was able to soften the coughing into clearing their throat.

"Is it a crass hand-sign? Did she insult me?" Janai's face darkened, wondering briefly if this would be the straw to tip the scales unfavorably for Amaya's future.

Kazi shook their head as the feeling of embarrassment, not for their own accord, rushed up along their neck to the tips of their ears. _Ohhh my, Amaya_. "Far from it, if we are speaking in absolutes." 

Janai's eyes narrowed and Kazi once again shifted under her gaze. "What do you mean, 'far from it'?"

Kazi rubbed their chest, still sore from the violent expelling of breath. "It's a hand sign of adoration, not of...um, a crass nature. If my translation is correct, which it is, based on the information provided...General Amaya has expressed that you are cute."

 _Oh, Primal Sun_ , Kazi ruminated as they took in the sight of the crimson flooding across Janai's astounded expression - the Golden Knight had yet to utter any response. _General Amaya will be the end of us both._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, wow. Where did the time go?
> 
> No worries, fam. I intend on sticking along for the long haul. It was a bit of an unintended hiatus because life happens...but I'm glad to be back.
> 
> Thanks for your patience, and _thank you_ all again for your love and support.  
> Y'all are truly amazing and you hype me up with your commentary. Seriously - you're the best.  
> I hope you enjoyed the chapter.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janai receives an unexpected visitor.

The Sun had barely begun to rise, still nestled below the skyline; the air seemed to glow with the anticipation of the dawning morning.

Swathes of dark indigo were gradually lightening into plum hues and the ambling clouds previously hidden in the night’s cover became more outlined by the sweep of radiating crimson surfacing from the horizon.

This was indeed Janai’s favorite moment; the juncture of time in which light breathed life into the night - the suspended balance before the scales tipped, where change was inevitable yet ever-caught in a cycle of ancient repetition.

The world was predestined in this loop. It was written in how the Sun and Moon chased after the other, altering the sky as they did. It was in the rhythm of how the waves ebbed and flowed against the shores, the music of the shhs steady and unending. It was even reflected in Life and Death themselves, from the first inhale of breath to the last. This was an unwavering truth.

The starlings that flew close to her bedchamber’s balcony trilled their songs as Janai leaned her hip against the marble railing, absently watching the people of Lux Aurea arise from their slumber. Her ears picked up on the distant ringing of tolling bells, the echoes cutting through the blankets of fog that would surely dissipate once as the Sun had climbed higher.

She hums against her earthenware cup’s edge, a breath of aromatic steam escaping into the chilled air. The sky foretold it to be a gorgeous day.

“Hello, dear sister.”

The teacup that was cradled in Janai’s hands barely jostled, but the smallest widening of her eyes and swift acceleration of her heartbeat betrayed her momentary lack of self-awareness.

She turns to coolly observe her newfound company, finding Khessa impeccably dressed in her Queen’s garb, leaning against the stone wall by the entrance with arms crossed. The glint of twilight reflects off of the mirror-polished gold of Khessa’s armor, adding a touch of haunting beauty to her stature. “Good morning, My Radiance.”

At the puff of condensation that escaped Khessa’s lips into the cold, biting air, Janai suppresses an amused little smile. Khessa had always insisted that any formalities be shed when it was just the two of them in private - a pact from a time when they were much younger. Still, Janai loved the subtle interactions of exchanging jibes and attempted to give them as often as she was subjected to her sister's mannerisms. “May I offer to prepare you a cup of tea?”

“That won’t be needed, as I don’t plan on this being an extended visit. I suppose you could say this is a business matter,” Khessa says as she pushes away from her leaning position, walking forwards to stop by Janai’s side at the balcony’s edge. “Which brings me to ask: why is your pet in her kennel?”

Janai’s heart slams against her ribs at the question. This was certainly an unexpected turn in her morning. “...Pardon?”

Khessa rolls her eyes in an exaggerated manner, fixing Janai with a flat look. “She’s passed the Trial, _surely_ you remember that whole ordeal. Your human might still be a political detainee of Lux Aurea, but I will not have her taking up valuable space. I need the pit cleared for interrogation with another prisoner.”

When Janai fails to answer quickly enough for her tastes, Khessa continues. “It will be a temporary matter. Just long enough for them to want to give information freely.”

Janai glances over, noting the flash of the dark smile that passes on Khessa’s lips. She was well aware of Khessa’s interrogation methods; in her sister’s role as Sunfire Queen, employing ways of extracting information quickly was a tactic needed to ensure their city’s protection. And in her role as Golden Knight of Lux Aurea, she was...quite familiar with her sister’s methods.

She suppresses the shiver that threatens to drag an icy claw down her spine. Perhaps it was for the best that General Amaya had been subjected to the Trial of the Light and not by more _creative_ measures at the hands of the Sunfire Queen.

Janai takes a long sip from the teacup, creating a much needed pause as her mind flickers through her options.

“What will you have me do? Assign an entourage to keep an eye out on her as I go about my duties?”

“The Breach’s only path was destroyed in your last encounter with the humans. You’ve already seen to it that the situation will be monitored by a few choice soldiers,” Khessa points out. “Nevertheless, would you honestly be content in having others stand guard, knowing that you alone can best her?”

“She’s no longer armed; it would be effortless for them to restrain her if needed,” Janai counters.

Khessa grins, a sideways smile that tells Janai all she needs to know of what was coming. “Too bad, Janai. I won’t allow it. What was Grandmother’s saying…? Oh, yes. ‘Keep your enemies close, and your captured rivals closer'?”

Janai resists rolling her eyes as she sighs out, “I do not believe that is the correct saying, sister. Please refrain from twisting Grandmother’s words of wisdom in order to get a rise out of me.”

“No, no. I’m certain that it is,” Khessa replies with a smirk. “At least...it is now.” She clicks her nails against the railing, the sharp staccatos on polished stone contrasting with the songbirds warbling. “Can you imagine it, though? What Grandmother would say if she knew you were protecting a human, given everything that has happened?”

From the corner of her eye, she notices Janai clenching her jaw. The muscles twitch in a strong wave to move down her neck where a thudding pulse is visible. Khessa’s focus narrows, pouncing on the motion like an emberback spider with its prey. There it was - one of her sister’s tells.

At Janai’s taut silence, she pushes forward. “If she knew that you were, dare I say it...bonding with this human?”

“We are not _bonding_ ,” Janai snaps out quickly. The words come forcefully as if the intensity of insistence would make them true.

She turns, fixating her sister with an exasperated scrunch of her brow. “I’ve explained it to you before, Khessa. She saved my life at The Breach. She had every opportunity to just...stand there and watch me cling to the edge, or dig her heel into my hand just to cause me to lose my grip and fall. She even threw me at one point in our fight; if she had let go just a fraction earlier, she would have pitched me into the lava below.”

Her grasp on her teacup tightened and the liquid within it trembled. Not even the gift of fire invulnerability would have spared her. She had come close to kissing Death’s cheek before; there was a certain peace in those moments, knowing she had accepted her fate. But _this_? This complex dance with this human woman that continued to clash at her level, even best her at times? A rival that chose to spare her? That was absolutely _terrifying_.

Khessa’s gaze is leveled as she watches Janai’s eyes flit back and forth unseeingly, clearly reliving the moments of her recent past. She sighs, deciding for once to take pity. “Come back to me, sister.”

Janai’s eyes clear and they both pause a short moment to allow space to breathe. The only sound is the gentle cooing from the pair of mourning doves at the far corner of the balcony, perched side by side upon a shallow birdbath.

“Do you feel that you are in debt to her?” Khessa’s voice is soft in question.

“I don’t…,” Janai trails off, wanting to make sense of tangled thoughts. “If I had, then surely it would have been repaid when I advocated for her in the throne room.”

“Advocated? More like groveled.”

“I did not _grovel_.”

“Are you sure? I’m positive it was along the lines of, ‘Oh, please, Khessa! Spare her! Warrior’s honor!’” Khessa mocks with a teasing glint in her eye. “That is the utter definition of groveling. I half expected you to throw yourself in front of her.” Khessa snaps her fingers together, stage-whispering conspiratorially, “In fact, I’m certain you coached her at the start of the Trial’s process.”

Janai’s head tilts backward, silently pleading to the heavens above as her neck flushes to a darker color. “The light was in your eyes, Khessa. It must have been a figment of your imagination.”

Khessa hums, clearly thinking otherwise. “Even so. She spat. At my boots, Janai. That alone should have called for her disposal. I won’t stand to have my position as Sunfire Queen questioned if prisoners gain confidence in being defiant.”

“We told her not to do anything stupid before we had left the pit,” Janai grumbles. “Consider yourself pardoned that you hadn’t the chance to converse with her prior to the Trial. I’ll have you know, she very rudely told me to shove a sword up my ass. The court’s session might have fared differently if she had the opportunity to communicate the same to you before the Trial,” she shrugs, lips slanting into a half-frown. It was certainly a grace that General Amaya had stayed shackled, preventing that possible debacle from happening.

“...Are you serious? She really told you that?” Khessa laughs, simply chuffed as she shakes her head in disbelief. “A part of me wishes I was there first-hand. I absolutely love watching things get you all ruffled.”

“Aha, oh yes,” Janai chuckles dryly, the sarcasm dripping from her words. “I love that for me, as well.”

The snark quickly fades as a question springs forward - wanting to be voiced. It was an entity that needed to be addressed. Khessa quiets, sensing the abrupt change in Janai’s demeanor.

“How…” Janai’s voice was small. Fragile. “How is it that someone who has shown such hostility towards our kind be deemed pure of heart?”

“Now that...I do not know,” Khessa slowly admits. “I believe that is an answer that only Grandmother would have known. It’s a shame we lost that opportunity, hm?” They stare at the city below, the horizon now awash with streaks of orange as if a fire spread across the sky. “Maybe, if the day should ever come, I can seek council with her and our parents in the events after my death. Ask them some real questions, like why was Janai blessed with imposing height and better cheekbone structure,” Khessa jokes, drumming her fingers along the stone. She pulls a face at Janai, a warm spark in her eyes.

Janai looses a small laugh, smiling even as a loc of hair falls over her shoulder as she shakes her head. “I think you should come up with better questions.”

“Better questions? Perhaps they would know what possessed our brother with the need to ‘find himself’.”

Khessa’s answer was a half-shrug. “Perhaps,” Janai echoes. “But we both know Ori was never one to shoulder the burdens of politics and warfare. Remember when he referred to Lux Aurea as ‘stifling’?”

“Mmm, yes, how could I forget? I had never before witnessed Suri struggle with wanting to strike someone upside the head with the Sun’s Staff. Ori ran away so quickly out of reach, the absolute coward,” Khessa reminisces, the barest trace of fondness in her words.

“He bruised easily. Could never take a punch,” Janai reminds her. “Even though he was not one for our worlds, at least he’s following and honoring his own path of enlightenment. You and I never had a choice.”

“Choice?” Khessa lifts her chin, bristling at the word. “It is not that we were given a choice, it was merely us following Fate’s design,” she shakes her head and bites at her lip, the anger and tenseness of her shoulders quickly deflating. She sighs a long breath, a rare moment of vulnerability showing true. “There’s still been no word from him, you know.”

This was no surprise to Janai’s ears, and yet it still stung. It had been so long already and Khessa knew that as well. It was weighted in her words, the phantom shadow of tiredness in her eyes. It was an extra yoke on her shoulders - a pain Khessa still carried. The last time they were all together was when Khessa had lashed out at him two years ago with the crown’s burden heavy on her head.

Khessa with her unbowing, stiff spine, was not one to apologize. Ori with his beautiful, soft heart, was too hurt to stay.

He had sailed away on his sloop under the cover of night, leaving without a trace except for a single note that was left in his chambers.

Janai recalls the smooth feeling of the parchment underneath her fingertips. She remembers how the inked words told a smudged story, splattered from the tears he shed. Her heart aches at the memory of the words that she could recite verbatim - and she knows that Khessa hasn’t forgotten, either.

_I forgive you, sister. But I will not forgive myself if I do not follow this calling I feel, tugging at the strings within the depth of my soul. You have made your stance quite clear, but still...I hope that one day you can understand._

_All my love,_  
_Ori_

Janai reaches her free hand out to Khessa, laying a warm hand against her sister’s forearm. “I’m sure he’s fine. Ori, if anything, is resourceful. He always did show the most intelligence out of us three,” she says, giving a reassuring squeeze. “He’ll return when he’s ready.”

Khessa merely shrugs her arm, jostling Janai’s touch off as a frown appears on her lips. Her pale amber eyes are turned to the waters, scanning the horizon; Janai wonders if she was hoping Ori’s colorful boat would be bobbing along in the gentle waves, just out of their reach.

A minute’s silence passed between the two as the sky continued to change in color.

Khessa breaks the quiet with a scowl. “I did not come here for us to wallow about the past and I will no longer be distracted by the matter, Janai. This...General Amaya. She is your responsibility now,” she says, watching for a reaction with a keen eye. “Surely I do not need to explain what freedoms and restrictions your pet is being gifted, now that she is under your care.”

“She’s not my --”

“But I want to make it _painfully_ clear, dear sister,” Khessa interrupts with a sharp emphasis, “--is that if your pet happens to bite, daresay even _bare_ her teeth at the civilians of this city…,” she turns, plucking the teacup out of Janai’s grasp to finish off the remaining liquid in one swift swig before setting it atop the nearby ledge. “I will hand you the dagger with which you’ll slit her throat.”

Janai’s spine stiffens at the consequences being laid out in front of her as her face transitions into a stoic look of apathy. “I understand.”

“See to it that you never forget.”

Janai responds with a swift nod, not quite trusting her voice. The worry that is evident in the smallest creases of her brow speaks volumes.

“Good. Now, that brings us to the original matter at hand,” Khessa braces her arms against the railing, leaning forwards to shift her weight comfortably. “Your pet is going to be displaced from her kennel until the newest guest complies. I have confidence in my methods, of course, but I must still make allowances for time in tying up loose ends.”

“Meaning, I should not make plans for her to return to the pit for the duration of the day and possibly past the night.”

“You’re as sharp as ever, I see,” Khessa’s statement elicits a withering gaze. “And since we are on the subject of where she should stay...I do not think it wise for you to allow your pet her own room,” Khessa tilts her head, throwing a smirk at Janai.

Janai’s heart judders, her mouth floundering about in shock. “You’re seriously not _suggesting_ \--”

“Oh, make no mistake. That was not a suggestion.”

“What will you have me do, have her sleep curled on the armchair?”

“Or the floor. At the foot of your bed. Perhaps here, on the balcony. Not like she could escape from this height, anyhow,” the golden surfaces of Khessa's armor glitter in the strengthened rays of sunlight as she chuckles with indifference. “What? Is the matter that you are concerned with where she will sleep, or is it that you worry that she will attempt to murder you once as your eyes shut for the night?”

“I, wha- _what_?”

“If your pet decides to ‘consume’ its owner - that’d be you, sister, just in case that bid a reminder - as you sleep, then perhaps your lack of establishing training would be to blame.”

“C-consume? Primal Sun, why must you be like this! She is not my pet! There will be no consumption of anything!” Janai groans, bringing a hand up to massage at her temple. “It is too early for this nonsense. You are causing me a headache.”

Khessa laughs, the sound uncharacteristically light. “You sure are a ray of sunshine this morning, aren’t you?”

“The only rays of sunshine here are the ones coming out of your ass,” Janai grits out between clenched teeth.

“Oh, come now, sister. It matters not what I call her. She is, all-in-all, your responsibility. Therefore, basically your pet,” Khessa straightens up from her position against the railing in a smooth motion to give Janai a look of finality. “I need to meet with Suri shortly to discuss our tasks for today," she states, making it clear that her visit had come to an end. "Make haste; I need the pit unoccupied before the Sun’s peak. Figure out what you must, Janai.”

“As you command, My Radiance,” Janai begrudgingly complies before turning her head to face the panoramic view of Lux Aurea once more, mentally wishing her day’s peace a farewell. “I’ll see to it that the matter will be taken care of within the coming hour after I finish my morning routine and dress appropriately.”

“Excellent. I’m so, _so_ glad we had this talk. And as a parting request, sister --,” Khessa reaches forward, closing the short distance between them to poke a finger into Janai’s face, wiggling the fingertip around to squish the yielding flesh of a painted cheek. Her antics only continued to pluck at Janai’s ire until a hand flew up to swat Khessa’s away. “I am aware that there will be an open market today. Be a dear and pick up some pastries, will you? I have a suspicion I’ll be ravenous between my meetings. You might also want to purchase a few for Suri; he’s a downright thief when it comes to delicious things.”

Janai’s face is impassive as she deadpans, “Then it should be Suri purchasing the replacements. But of course. As you wish.”

Khessa turns and begins to walk away. “In fact...why don’t you take your pet for a walk there as well?” Khessa laughs, not needing to look behind at Janai to know her jaw is slack. “The sky foretells it to be a beautiful day after all, isn’t that right?”

Janai shakes her head and sighs, hearing Khessa’s quiet footsteps casually stride to the bedchamber’s entrance. Despite Khessa’s insistence of getting under her skin, the words come forth easily and unbidden to call out:

“Hey.” Khessa’s already halfway through the door when she stops, turning to glance behind towards Janai with a quiet look of expectancy. The Sun has fully emerged from the horizon and it paints the Sunfire Queen in a warm light. “I love you, sister.”

A hint of a smile blooms and spreads on Khessa’s lips. “Likewise, Little Sun.”

Janai mirrors the expression with a soft nod, watching as Khessa steps over the threshold and disappears from view before the soft click of the door’s latch is heard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mad thanks and deep appreciation to @Luxaureas for Suri, as well as @Solitae and @Nightworldlove for Ori! Y'all should check them out here on Ao3 and Tumblr. They're brilliant minds and authors; this chapter wouldn't have been what it was without the names and headcanons for their respective characters.
> 
> And deep love to all of you who take the time to read my fic(s) and comment! Your support and feedback truly means the world to me and helps keep the inspiration flowing on the possibilities of where this story can go. Y'all are amazing! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I did.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Amaya gets a chance to stretch her legs.

There was truly no other way to entertain one’s self in this firepit of a cell unless it be through meditation or extensive calisthenic workouts to maintain a disciplined physique. But with this surrounding fire...it was more sensible to maintain hydration levels than to squander any drinking water given from the guards.

Meditation was effortless and undemanding. It gave an abundance of chances to reflect on the happenstances and consequences of life before it all gave way to a comfortable mental stillness. Even as the flames surrounded her and heat licked at any exposed patches of skin, she was able to find an escape that provided some relief.

Palms were braced against the taut muscles of her thighs as she knelt onto the warmth of stone. Breaths were steady and grounding with each prolonged inhale and exhale. She was wholly attuned. 

Time was indiscernible in this state.

When her sixth sense started to prickle its way into her sated consciousness, she opens her eyes, focusing quickly on the pair of Sunfire elves that were closing the distance upon their entry.

 _“Kazi,"_ Amaya quirks a smile as she finger-spells their name. _“I hope you feel refreshed since our last meeting. Is it morning already? And I see you’ve...brought gifts?”_ She motions to the guard trailing behind the interpreter, noting the items with a keen eye that were being carried close to his chest: a wooden bowl filled with water and a meticulously folded bundle of cloth.

 _“Ah, yes! It is indeed morning now, General.”_ Kazi dips their head in recognition of Amaya’s greeting, _“And thank you for inquiring about my health - I am feeling much better.”_

Kazi instructs the guard to place the small collection of items onto the ground in front of Amaya, dismissing him once as the task is complete. Both they and Amaya watch as he places a fist to chest respectfully before exiting back through the opened portal.

_“These are for you, General. Please, go ahead.”_

Amaya shifts in movement reaching out to unravel the folds, revealing her laundered Katolian under armor clothing sitting atop a plush washcloth. She can’t help the uptick of a smile at noticing the small stitching made up towards the shoulder where Janai had slashed, astonishingly making contact with the Sunforged sword during their last skirmish. It’s a minute detail, and yet her chest warms at the effort where the thread used in its repair is a remarkable match to the color of the shirt.

 _“I thought she would have kept the reminder that she managed to tag me,”_ she signs with a grin, tapping a fingertip against the threaded seam. 

_“Even though it is mended, you both are aware of its existence,”_ Kazi responds with an amused smile. _“Your wound from that fight...does it need further treatment?”_

Amaya shrugs with indifference. _“Fortunately, no. It was damn near instantly cauterized when it happened. It should scar over soon enough.”_ She pulls the basin of water closer before moving to stand. _“It’s been made clear that you want me to look presentable, so...?”_ Amaya twirls a finger in the air.

Kazi nods, understanding the request without fail. _“Just tap my arm when you’re ready, General.”_

They turn, and she sets to work.

Amaya can’t help but think on the blind trust the interpreter puts in her as the minutes pass. If this had been another place, in another time, this situation surely would not have worked out in the Sunfire elf’s favor. 

It would have been too easy to use the extra clothing as a gag or restraint, she thinks, as she strips out of Janai’s borrowed outfit. The bowl and water itself could have been wielded as weapons, she muses, as she drags the wet washcloth across her torched skin. It would be effortless to overpower Kazi in this position, her warrior’s mind lowly whispers, as she changes back into her Katolian clothing.

Amaya shakes the thoughts from her head, pulling the gloves up her forearms with practiced motion. She settles for watching the elf before her, still with their back turned. 

Her hands clenched into fists, stretching out the glove’s familiar material over her knuckles. 

It’s almost dangerous how much trust Kazi is placing on her shoulders; they’ve only known each other for a few days at most. Kazi might have hearing, but they surely lack the reflexes of a militant soldier. And yet...despite everything, there they stand - back facing her, posture relaxed, head leaning to one side as if in thought.

She relaxes her hands with a quiet sigh and she steps forward, touching Kazi’s elbow with a gentle touch. Their eyes are kind as they turn back around to face her, blissfully unaware of the thoughts that just ran through Amaya’s head; even though the training is embedded in her being, it’s still enough to make her feel a pang of guilt.

 _“I apologize that we weren’t able to get you to a proper bath this morning, but I hope the washbasin will tide you over until later this evening.”_

Amaya’s smile is small, softening in its tenseness even as she replies, _“It was what I needed but I do look forward to that.”_

 _“In due time, I promise. How are you holding up this morning?”_ Kazi is genuine in their question, the indent of their brow creasing with a muted concern.

 _“Calm. Yet restless.”_ When Kazi’s brow furrows deeper, she hastens in her signing. _“Not to be mistaken with agitation, it’s just...excess energy that needs to be expelled. And truth be told, I am worried that the prolonged exposure from these flames have left me with a permanent blush.”_

Kazi’s eyes are darting around her exposed areas of skin of the face and neck, as if ruminating on the information presented. _“Forgive me, General Amaya. I’m afraid I would make for a terrible sparring partner. While I may not be able to assist you as an opponent, we may rid you of energy through our walks today.“_

Amaya perks up at that. The delight at Kazi’s words are transparent on her features, judging on how the interpreter’s body mirrors the enthusiasm with a smile simultaneously. _“Walks. Plural. To a singular location, as in to and back, or to multiple?”_

_“Multiple, I am happy to say. It’ll be an opportunity to stretch your legs. We’ll make way to address your burns soon enough; they’re not severe, from the areas I’ve assessed. Still, I’ll be sure you are provided with an appropriate salve before this day ends. Does that seem agreeable?”_

Amaya braces her hands against her lower back, bending and shifting until a small pop is felt. She straightens up with a smile. _“More than agreeable, Kazi. I can’t even begin to tell you how unbelievably thrilled I am with being let out for the time being.“_

 _“I imagined as much. Let’s head out then, yes?”_ Kazi turns away from Amaya, a round gateway parting as they approach the firewall’s edge.

Amaya glanced down, gaze bouncing between her unbound wrists and Kazi’s awaiting presence at the opened portal. _“Are we...forgetting something?”_

 _“While we may be fore-going any shackles, Janai has given specific orders that you will no longer be restrained so that you and I are able to communicate freely.”_ Kazi’s eyes narrow playfully, before signing, _“Unless of course, any action that you should enact in an unfavorable manner will once again require them.”_

 _“Exertion of energy by walking civilly only, not by running and evading Lux Aurea’s guards,”_ Amaya winks at the exasperated look that flashes on Kazi’s face as she steps through the opening. _“In my role of being a political prisoner, you have my word that I won’t make a break for it.”_

 _“Your reassurance eases my nerves,”_ Kazi dryly signs, even as their eyes shine with amusement. The pink tint of their glasses flash as they motion their head up towards the exit. _“Come now, General. I think you’ll find this outing quite refreshing.”_

They walk side by side up the staircase leading to the dungeon’s ironclad door and when it swings open, Amaya squints her eyes against the pained welcoming brightness of morning. The city breathes differently in the daylight than under the darkened haze of nightfall, and it’s more than refreshing.

Even the air is more vibrant with mouthwatering pungent aromas of spices and fired meats that cut prominently through the salty tang of the nearby waters. The sources responsible for the smells had yet to be seen and sadly served as a reminder that she had yet to eat a proper meal for the day. She pushed the pang of hunger down, trusting that Kazi had a plan in mind.

It’s exceedingly fascinating to notice details that were previously cloaked in shadow come to life: The gold and marble spires that were passed during Amaya’s last escort out of the prisons with Janai reveal deep etchings of images, the finer details worn to obscurity from the passing of time. Each carving was different, and as they walked the pathways it seemed as if the spires were snapshots of stories, moving frame by frame as they passed.

When Amaya inquired about them, Kazi confirmed it solemnly. 

_“Chronicles of Lux Aurea’s history, that’s correct. They all depict factual recounts and legends that are at the heart of our culture. Some tell stories of how Lux Aurea was shaped and formed, others might explain how some of our celebrations came to be. Key events...historical figures. Every panel has a story and they are all equally important - never to be forgotten, no matter what state the material may be in.”_

Kazi steps closer to one section of a wall, touching the ornate hammered brass of an ancient warrior’s pauldron with a reverence that sends a chill up Amaya’s spine. _“The recounting of our history is a coming-of-age rite that all Sunfire elves must perform before they are considered adults. They begin by walking the path to follow the narrations in the correct order, circling endlessly around the city for what seems days without end. When the last and most recently added panel is observed, the group will make their way to the Sun Nexus, where Our Radiance will address them on the new day.”_

_“Why is it that we don’t see anyone walking it currently?”_ Amaya asks, gesturing around them as if to point out they were the only visible individuals in the area.

 _“It’s a rite that occurs roughly once a month; the ceremony happens the sundown before the true full moon reaches its peak, ending when the Sun replaces it. It’s remarkably symbolic of how the Moon reflects Sun, as death reflects life. A severance from childhood as you begin anew, transitioning into an adult to fully accept the responsibilities that the city places on you as you contribute back to society.”_

_“I noticed you didn’t mention a specific age.”_

_“There isn’t one. For instance...I had just turned fourteen when I walked the path. Others in my ceremonial group were older - being within the second and third decades are far more common.”_ Kazi tilts their head, observing Amaya with a thoughtful look. _“Perhaps...you might even observe it happen during your time here in Lux Aurea. It’s not too far off.”_

As they continue weaving their way through the cobblestoned alleyways of the city, the murals transition from gold and marble spires to more humble materials of white brick and limestone walls of civilian homes. There are even sections of weathered etchings even exhibiting flecks of paint peeling away from the stone. It all whispers testaments to its true age, its history bared in the open for all to experience.

They turn a corner in the maze of alleyways and it’s as if they had ventured into an older section of Lux Aurea, wading backwards in the timeline. 

The covered archways down the alley filter sunlight through hanging foliage and the light cast through shimmers onto the relief artworks of multiple figures looking towards a ghostly audience. In each of the figures, one of the sculpted arms holds a tool or physical form of literature and the other arm gestures for the passerby to follow the path...all leading to a singular towering doorway at the end of the passage.

They had finally reached their destination.

Kazi lays a hand against the looping gilded scrawl inlay of the smooth metal before gently shouldering the massive door open. Amaya’s eyes widen as it gives way easily to the mild pressure, as if the door weighed as much as a feather instead of the thousand pounds of gold, iron, and wood that constructed its form.

They step through the building’s threshold and the hands that Amaya was prepared to sign with quickly still in the air as her eyes begin to register what she is truly seeing.

The door that they passed through pales in comparison to size to the absolute enormity of the interior. 

Amaya’s jaw goes slack and her hands fall limply to her sides.

It’s a library like none she’s ever seen before.

Scores upon scores of bookshelves all equipped with slender sliding ladders, hundreds of racks packed with tightly wound scrolls, thick and aging tomes encased behind decorative stained glass...There are more manuscripts here than there are milliseconds of a day, and she is bowled over by the feeling that she could spend lifetimes here within its walls without even truly scratching the surface of all there was offered. 

Particles of dust catch rays of light, cascading downwards from the immense domed glass and iron ceiling to cast on sections of frayed publications as if a divine hand points the way towards finding the answers sought throughout one’s life. 

She breathes deeply to ground herself and is instantly greeted by the intense scent of the classic ‘old manuscript smell’. 

The vivid flash of memory that comes through makes her heart stutter. _"It’s called ‘biblichor’," a young Sarai eloquently signs as she darts about the Royal Katolis Library. "Harrow says it has a gross stench to it, but I think it's lovely." Sarai reaches for the most aged book in sight, opening its covers before offering the item for Amaya to take a whiff. "What do you think it smells like?"_

The memory fades as she breathes even deeper. 

The more she focuses, the easier it becomes to separate odors from each other. Woody and cedar-like scents from worn out tables and chairs. Organic oils from the aging leathers. Flowery perfumes of incense holders. An underlying mustiness from older fabrics. There’s even a sweeter smell hanging about that she would label reminiscent of chocolate.

Her shoulders droop the slightest amount and she wills her heart to still. “Damn it,” she breathes out quietly, biting at the inside of her lip in sheer wonderment when Kazi makes no indication that they’ve heard a rare vocalization slip out -- maybe their hearing isn’t as perfect as she previously imagined it to be. 

Sarai would have loved to experience this place firsthand. 

Unfathomable knowledge lay within every angle of sight of the floor they stood on, and by the extension of a single hand, the wealth of wisdom would flow unbidden from a book’s covers. Being aware of how much she truly doesn’t know makes her arm hairs stand on end and she shakes the heavy feeling off.

The muscles of her neck strain as she cranes her gaze upwards, fixating on the multitudes of tiers that are as packed with material as the one they occupy. 

The Royal Katolis Library in the castle was grand, an amassment of texts handed down and expanded upon throughout the centuries. It was an envy across the Human Kingdoms and many persons would journey to their gates looking to barter and trade, petitioning for even the slightest amount of insight that could only be found within their books. 

This library put Katolis’s to _absolute shame_ \- even if the Royal Library was multiplied tenfold and stacked on top of each other, this space could easily accommodate the structure. 

_“...Holy fuck, Kazi.”_ Amaya’s speed of signing reflects the stunning awe that floors her, moving slowly in a daze as she breathes out.

Kazi’s nose crinkles in confusion. _“Forgive me, General. I have not covered that second hand sign in my studies...but I imagine it’s positive?”_

Amaya breathes out a small laugh. _“You could say that. We’ll go over some Katolian sign language more in depth at a later time, but nevermind that for now.”_ Her eyes trail up the spiraling staircases, reminiscent of a double helix, leading to higher levels of the archive. _“You’ve brought me to a library?”_

They nod, looking fondly around at their surroundings. _“Lux Aurea’s first library, which we fondly call ‘The Archive.’ The foundation was laid and built shortly after Lux Aurea was established as a city. Not only is it one of the more historic structures still in use today, we house the largest collection of recorded resource material compared to the other libraries located around the whole of Xadia.”_

Kazi begins to lead Amaya through the interior, making way to one of the grand staircases that swirled around the building. 

_“It’s as deep as it is tall, truly. The ground and first five floors cater mostly to the public, the above higher levels are reserved typically for academics and scholars, and the sublevels accommodate individuals more involved with magics, runes, ...any matter relating to the arcane._

_"There are many institutions around Lux Aurea that are dedicated to academic disciplines. But here, this place is special. Consider it as a tree, yes? Large and ancient. This was the first building to house all of such academia, but it eventually spread its branches and smaller institutions were created with a few even acting as fail safes.”_

_“I can only imagine how much knowledge would be lost without the fail safes in place if an event was to devastate this structure.”_

_“Thousands of years in setbacks, I would speculate. In fact...there’s an ancient account from the Far Reaches where a fire ravaged the library there; close to a half million scrolls burned, and none could be salvaged. It set back their civilization’s progress immeasurably.”_

_“Fuuuck.”_ She signs, prolonging the duration of the hand movement with wide eyes.

 _“...My sentiments, exactly.”_

As they ascend higher, Amaya takes the chance to look over the balustrade’s edge down to the ground floor. She marvels at the geometric shapes of the towering shelves and it reminds her of the maze constructed of the imposing height of thorny hedges back at the Katolis gardens. 

Another memory flashes. _“The towering, winding corridors of shelved tomes and scrolls became my home,” the figment of Kazi signs, the loneliness showing transparent on their face. “I grew to know each bound book by name…”_

Oh. _“You told me briefly of this place, when we were alone in the pit that first time."_ She steps away from the railing, examining the interpreter with an attentive gaze. _"This is where you were raised.”_

Kazi bobs their head in a small nod before shifting their pink-tinted glasses higher up the bridge of their nose with a fingertip. _“And I’ve lived here ever since.”_

_“You, as a child, roaming an ancient library when you weren’t attending your lessons...you must have come across interesting nooks and crannies during that time, surely.”_

_“I’ve stumbled across a few hidden areas, yes.”_ A smirk crosses Kazi’s lips and the appearance of it takes Amaya by surprise. _“I wasn’t always a studious child, mind you. In the earlier days when I would be consumed with anger at being abandoned, I used to hide from my mentors in what would be considered a grand-scale game of hide and seek. They managed to locate a fraction of the ones I discovered and utilized.”_ They shrug nonchalantly. _“At least they never found all the spots where I had scratched my name in the shelving.”_

 _“Kazi! You? Small time vandalism?”_ Amaya’s jaw drops as she clutches at her chest in shock. _“I never would have guessed.”_

Amaya holds the pose even through Kazi’s side smile and sheepish explanation of, _“It was a long time ago.”_

They’ve ascended twelve monolithic flights to the highest level of the Archive with minimal conversation before Amaya takes note that this floor’s design contrasts from the ones that they had traversed: the mosaic tiling is far more worn than any level below, the light from the domed ceiling blanketing the painted stones in a warm glow. The scrolls and tomes are non-existent and there are no traces of furniture or shelving in sight.

There’s an element about the combination that dances ghostly fingertips across her skin and raises her hair on edge.

Kazi notices her peering curiously around the room and addresses the unspoken question.

_“These are subsections of the original flooring from the Archive’s construction; relocated centuries later to the highest level to be closest to the Sun as homage to our ancestors. Lux Aurea holds these with as much reverence as the Primal energy that warms them. Take care in your footfalls, General Amaya. You are the first human in quite some time to tread such hallowed ground.”_

Amaya considers the discolored ruts in the flooring where endless footfalls had tread, and it sends another shiver zipping up her spine. _“Is that why it feels so...charged, here? Not just this area, but the Archive as a whole.”_

 _“Perhaps. There’s the theory that the stone harbors energy from those who have walked its surface. A past High Scholar speculated that both emanating and residual energy were able to escape some of the texts, which might cause the 'charged' feeling. A different High Scholar specializing in the arcane arts used to have a strong assertion about our tomes: ‘you could sense its soul, and the souls of the ones who’ve touched its bindings.’ It’s likely you are experiencing all three concepts as we walk about,”_ Kazi offers with a small shrug.

Amaya tunes into the static feeling, focusing on _how_ it’s affecting her. Her skin tingles all over, even under the padding of her clothing. The sensation is most prominent at her hands, emanating from the palms and fingertips. _“Do you...Can you feel what I’m feeling?”_

 _“Not to the same degree, I imagine.”_ Kazi looks over at her thoughtfully, biting at their lip in a momentary pause as they continue to walk the expanse to stand in front of a lone, unassuming panel that blended effortlessly against the stone. _“Your body must not be used to being around such magical energies. You might be sensing them more strongly, considering primal energies are immensely amplified on Xadian soil compared to the Human Kingdoms...just something to keep in mind. We’ll address that more later if you wish; we’ve come to where we need to be.”_

They nudge the door open, and Amaya’s eyes immediately widen at the sight that greets her.

It’s a humbly-sized circular loft styled bedroom, in essence. But it’s the _sheer_ amount of sprawling greenery scattered about the comforts of the quaint room that truly take her by surprise.

There’s colorful unruly ivy clinging to the walls as they weave their way around structural pillars. Succulents seemingly cascade outwards from glass terrariums on a ledge underneath the large opened windows, where they are kept company by a series of metal wind chimes all varying in size right above them.

On the worn wood of a scholar's rectangular desk sit ceramic pots of ferns that frame the perimeter of scattered sheets of paper and writing utensils. 

A side table adjacent to a small bed tucked into the loft’s corner supports a meticulously trimmed and well taken care of ficus bonsai tree, miniature in its stature.

There are a multitude of curious-looking flora placed strategically on and around Kazi’s personal book collection’s shelving, and the appearance of it beckons her closer. Brightly colored leaves and fibrous spines, the heads of the flowers splitting in half to reveal prongs that keenly imitate teeth.

Amaya leans forward to assess what appears to be a purpling berry laying at the base of its mouth, smelling a hint of sickly sweet fragrance as she moves, but stops when Kazi’s quick arm is waving out from the corner of her vision.

 _“I wouldn’t recommend getting too close to that one. It’s carnivorous flora...and a little poisonous, if you come into contact with it. Not lethal, of course, but it will give you a nasty rash.”_ They close the distance to stand beside each other, even as Amaya takes a wary step away from the plant’s proximity. _“You might have noticed a particular smell. The scent that it excretes is a bait for the moths and other numerous insects that wish to chew at my books.”_

 _“I never would have guessed you have such a profound green thumb.”_ Amaya takes a moment to look around the space, deeply impressed at the flourishing plant life that occupies such an immense portion of the loft. It speaks volumes of the individual that cares for them so thoughtfully. _“It suits you.”_

Kazi nods, a warm glow to their cheeks. _“I am pleased you think so.”_

_“...How long have you lived here?”_

_“Since early on in my adolescent years - this was one of the storage rooms I discovered, and I deemed it fit to be converted into a space of my own.”_

Amaya’s hands move to continue with additional questioning but pause when her eyes catch the images sketched on the sheets of paper that lined the desk. _“May I?”_ she asks, gesturing to the sheets. At Kazi’s _“of course”_ , she begins to look through them more in depth, sliding the documents across the wood with a gentle touch. 

They’re all illustrations for hand-signing, accommodating both four and five fingered variations, each complete with phantom lines to signal motion. There are meticulously kept notes at the bottom of each page, and Amaya softens even further when she realizes what this truly is.

 _“These are the hand signs you were asking me about, during my recovery from the Trial.”_ Amaya shifts the papers back together to their original state before leaning against the desk’s edge to get a better look at the interpreter. _“You never mentioned you were in the process of creating your own sign-language text.”_

Kazi slides the bridge of their glasses higher up their nose, complexion darkening even further in a blush. _“I meant to bring up the topic but Janai came back before we could speak on it. And speaking of Janai...this is the real reason why I brought you here this morning.”_ They reach past Amaya’s leg to open up a drawer, pulling a cloth-bound rectangular object from its depths to place it at Amaya’s side.

 _“I understand that the interaction between yourself and Janai in my absence was kept to communicating using ink and paper. There may be times when I may once again be absent or unable to interpret, and there may be times where you would both prefer to keep the conversations between yourselves. And so, this is for you.”_ Kazi pulled back the thin cloth, revealing a small deep chestnut colored leather-bound journal tucked into a matching leather pouch consisting of a series of fasteners attached to a adjustable straps.

Amaya can’t help the breath that gets knocked from her chest, Kazi’s gesture absolutely flooring her. 

She picks it up gingerly to assess it closer - while there are no ornate engravings to the covers, the edges of the book's binding is detailed with the deep blue hues reminiscent of Katolis. It's a well-placed touch of home that brings a smile to her lips. 

The item is handsomely simple, matches her armor's palette harmoniously, contains no unnecessary frills, and serves a purpose.

Amaya sweeps a hand across the leathers. It's absolutely perfect.

 _“Thank you, Kazi.”_ Her eyes shine with a hint of unshed tears. _“Words can truly never convey how meaningful this is to me.”_

_“You’re welcome, General Amaya. We can say it is in the best interest for strengthening ties between differing cultures, for as much as we can at this time.”_

_"It's an extraordinary gift, Kazi. Really, I can't thank you enough."_

They respond with a small smile. _“There's another feature that I requested for it's creation. May I?”_

When Amaya hands the journal over, Kazi fishes the item from the confines of its bindings before running a finger along the curvature of the book’s spine, nodding their head in satisfaction when it opens from a hidden seam with a thin cylindrical quill popping up from the small gap. _“It’s enchanted...but truthfully the term only extends to the binding’s opening and an included quill charmed to never run out of ink, always within reach. Just drag your finger along its edge to access it._

_“The journal papers themselves are quite normal. However, if you don’t mind blood-binding runes, no worries - they are in no way related to the darker magicks - I can have one of my colleagues add a few for security measures. Think of them as a lock and key; only those with your permission would be able to read and utilize the journal.”_

_“Thank you for the offer, but I’ll stick with the base enchantments for now.”_ Amaya’s grin is genuine as Kazi returns the journal, nodding with understanding at Amaya’s decision. A comfortable silence surrounds them as she secures the leather binding to her thigh, adjusting and tugging at the bindings in close inspection to ensure it wouldn’t come loose.

Amaya thinks on the permanent shift that hangs tangibly between the two of them - an amicable feeling that slots seamlessly, and she wonders if Kazi feels it as well.

It’s a welcomed feeling.

Kazi rubs their hands together before motioning towards the door with a bashful look. _“Now that our first errand is completed...if you’re ready, we can begin walking to our next location.”_ They reach to grab a limp linen sack hanging from a hook from the nearest wall, throwing the straps over their head for it to rest diagonally across their chest. _"I'm sure you're famished. We're heading to the open market next."_

 _“Famished is a damned good word for it.”_ Amaya clasps a strong hand against Kazi’s shoulder as she springs away from the desk, expelling soft huffs of laughter as the movement jostles the elf with a startled look. The shock quickly wears away as they face each other with matching full-fledged smiles. _“Let’s go get some breakfast.”_

,,,,,

Their outing to the open-air market is smooth, as well as it can be.

Word of the Trial had certainly spread, and the few days buffer of being under Janai’s care and continuous watchful eyes seemed to smooth over any roiling tensions that most citizens harbored towards the human. And being under Kazi’s care for the day seems to amplify that to an immense degree.

It quickly becomes clear to Amaya that while the Sunfire elf interpreter has expressed a lack of immediate family, they are truly beloved by the kingdom; as if the majority of the people knew of Kazi and had adopted the scholar in some shape or form. 

They speak animatedly with those who are comfortable in their approach, translating the fast conversations with equally fast hands so that Amaya was never excluded and could give responses as she saw fit. The surrounding persons that were wary of Amaya’s presence beside the interpreter, rapidly become cordial. 

It was as if Kazi’s reputation and personality were a diffuser, softening any unease associated with the human captive.

The empty linen pack that was slung across diagonally on Kazi’s body is quickly filled with trinkets, multiple vials of colorful inks, plant trimmings wrapped in damp gauze, and vast amounts of small colorful candies. At Amaya’s incredulous look of shock as the various merchants continue to add in different sweets, Kazi scratches at the back of their neck with an embarrassed smile. 

_“I admittedly have a sweet tooth in preparation for long sessions of studying and compiling research,”_ they let on. 

_“As long as those aren’t used as the first meal of your day. An actual breakfast is important for your health, you know.”_

Amaya is gifted with overflowing samples of local cuisine, being careful in minding pulling faces when some of the foods are too sour for her tastes.

Some of the vendors try to take advantage of Amaya’s lesser knowledge of their land’s more extreme fruits and vegetables; Kazi has had to snatch the different local delicacies out of her hands more than twice thus far. 

_“They didn’t tell you what this is called, I’m sure,”_ as Kazi slides a faux reprimanding glance as the grinning vendors linger next to their produce. _“This is a ghost-viper pepper, and it’s as dangerous as it sounds. So spicy, you’ll go practically blind for at least ten minutes.”_

Amaya’s eyebrows raise to new heights as she looks towards the vendors, now laughing with their hands up knowing they’ve been had. _“That was a close call,”_ she signs, motioning to wipe off an imaginary drop of sweat off of her forehead.

Kazi laughs at the gesture as the vendors offer Amaya more tame, _Kazi-approved_ , peppers to try. _“Yes, you going blind from spice intake would not have been conducive to our outing, at all. There’s so much more for you to experience while we’re out and about, still!”_

Elven swordsmiths and blacksmiths alike try to persuade them closer with little success, laughing and holding up cups of brew in cheers and promise when Amaya is snatched back by the interpreter’s quick reflexes - _“Maybe next time when Janai is present, General Amaya,”_ Kazi signs sheepishly when Amaya turns to them with a pout. 

Only a few curious Lux Aureans have the fortitude to approach and direct their questions to Amaya, tilting their heads in a show of curiosity: younger persons crowd around to ask her what the Human Kingdoms were like in comparison to their city here, what it was like where she was from. The more confident of the gaggles of children tug at her pant legs and sleeves for her attention, asking if she’ll be staying in Lux Aurea for a while. 

One child in particular is content with hanging onto Amaya’s shirt hem, ducking her head into the woman’s hip when Amaya leans down to investigate her new attachment. Amaya rests her hand gently on the girl’s shoulder every few minutes, letting her know she wasn’t forgotten.

Elves closer to them in age lob jabs as to where her actual handler was. Those questions were quickly routed out to be friendly, as seen by their sneaking smiles and laughs when Kazi flusters spectacularly.

They’re both chatting amicably with an elderly Sunfire elf beside her fruit stand, a toothy grin on her lips as she’s offering them both remarkably small round-shaped berries cradled in the palms of her hands. 

“This is the pride of my stall!” Kazi signs and speaks vocally. “You’ll find no other higher quality fruit, I swear it!” The woman is nodding emphatically, and her glee is infectious as smiles come across both her and Kazi’s faces. “It’s a royal favorite, particularly Jan--”

It’s when Kazi halts interpreting the active conversation between the three of them that she knows something is wrong; Kazi’s hands are frozen in the air in front of their chest, but their eyes are alert and searching the crowd. It’s etched on the vendor’s now scowling face, the growing deep crease of concern and confusion on her brow as she closes her hands around the fruits. The elder begins to look around for the source of commotion, stepping away from her guests as she does to retreat behind the safe barrier of the stall’s wooden partition.

It’s the way that everyone else around them goes still. Wide eyes, darting gazes. More bodies shuffling and turning to face one direction more than any other. She follows the majority’s way of focus but nothing is yet coming to view. 

The children that have been darting near their legs scurry back into the crowd, likely in an attempt to find their parents. Even the unnamed child unlatches from her hip, disappearing into a nearby alleyway. The Lux Aureans closest to them begin to withdraw, and suddenly it’s as if both she and Kazi are left alone in the quiet eye of a brewing storm. 

They’re completely surrounded by the people attending the market, all now stopped with eyes on them.

It’s a physical hush she can sense that makes her blood run cold and senses sharpen ten-fold. The familiar feeling is so deeply imprinted in her chest, it bids her a greeting like an old friend.

It reminds her of the moment where time slows to a grinding halt, waiting for the sudden movement of action. Much like a nocked arrow, with the gradual slow pullback of the bowstring - the physical tension before the inevitable release.

The memory that comes forth is unbidden and reflexive: of her being astride her faithful horse in front of The Standing Battalion, holding a clenched fist in midair, silently calling them all to hold and await her signal. She could only imagine the quiet that would wash over her troops as they waited for her hand to drop and the charge would begin.

The fist drops.

And her eyes catch the movement she’s been anticipating.

There’s a Sunfire elf roughly pushing their way through the crowd and when he comes into view, his anger is palpable. Tall and broad, dressed in red and gold threaded clothing, a medallion hanging about his neck that identifies him as a merchant. There are thick swatches of facial hair about his face, and -- _oh_. Amaya recognizes him from when Janai was escorting her from the prisons up to the palace just a day prior - even in the cover of night, in the firelit streetways, he is a terribly familiar face.

The air of hostility rolls off of him in waves and the intensity of the expression that’s sullied on his grizzled features is just as terribly recognizable. 

Intolerance. Bitterness. Aggression.

She draws a prolonged inhale before the equal length of an exhale. It’s one that’s been painted on her own face before, admittedly many a time. And in light of recent events, she is aware that those are emotions and mannerisms she is steadily making the amendments to unlearn.

In the split second before the coming action, her mind is flashing through the entirety of the past few days: 

Reaching down to spare her rival from a gruesome death. 

Being sweated out in interrogation for military intelligence. 

The agony of enduring the Trial of Light. 

Waking to realize she was being cared after. 

Speaking with Kazi and finding a like-minded individual, a person that was quickly weaving their way into being named as a friend. 

Having late dinner with her captor, clearly her equal on the battlefield, a tenacious Sunfire elven woman who attempted to hide her small smiles behind a teacup.

Even to now, learning about Lux Aurea and the people that inhabit it. Being swept up in their history and tales of near-distant lands. Hearing of their personal stories and experiences that could never have been found in any library across the Human Kingdoms.

The second ends, and a move is made.

It's not one she was expecting either, if she's being completely honest. 

Kazi steps in front of her, trying to placate the much broader Sunfire elf through spoken word. They still aren’t interpreting what is being said by both accounts - the elf’s heavy mustache around his lips makes it difficult to make out what is being said. Not that it particularly matters; his body’s language displays volumes.

One of Kazi’s hands is angled off to the side behind their lower back, motioning for her to stay there and not interfere. Their other hand is extended, and Amaya can see that it’s reached out in warning with fingers splayed and palm outward as if to keep him at bay.

The merchant puffs out his chest and the medallion shifts, his face glowing an emanating red with unbridled anger as he lifts an arm and stabs at the air to gesture towards her, still carefully guarded behind Kazi’s much slender body. 

She knows a statement is uttered that he does not take kindly to, as his eyes are wide with shock before quickly narrowing into a look that translates sheer revulsion, looking Kazi up and down as if they had personally offended him. 

His arm that was suspended in air drops with a slowness back down to his side, and his hands twitch into matching fists. 

She notes the way his shoulders are shaking with restraint. Spittle froths from his mouth with vein-popping verbal lashings, and it’s clear from the way Kazi’s back tenses it’s an insult that hits home. 

She sees his right foot subtly twitch to dig further into the stone ground. His hips cant minutely to favor one side, and she predicts his movement with a calculated precision that would rival Sarai’s intuitiveness on the battlegrounds.

The echoing of her pulse running through her veins slows with a practiced discipline, and she moves at the same time the merchant lunges forwards for Kazi.

She quickly grabs Kazi's low stretched hand and the fabric of their tunic, pulling the interpreter away and backwards from the man’s reaching clutches. She maneuvers to sidestep around Kazi, abruptly entering his personal space. 

This movement is enough to shock him as he slams his foot forward, catching himself from tripping to narrowly avoid colliding bodily with the human in front of him.

She’s aware of Kazi's grasping hand at her back, fingers just brushing the cloth of her Katolian under-armor tunic, but she won’t move. 

She never once takes her eyes off him, staring him down unblinkingly with a steely gaze that would make her battle hardened commanders wither. 

She doesn’t need her hearing to know a hush has spread through the crowd as they watch with bated breath. 

It’s a staredown as the human general and the elven merchant hold their positions, near chest to chest, with Amaya’s calm demeanor conflicting against his seething stance and grit teeth.

The arrow has been nocked, and the bowstring pulled once more. Its release is inevitable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...oh sh**.
> 
> Working in some stylistic choices on how I'll be doing spoken dialogue vs signing dialogue from now on - I'll be backtracking through previous chapters to get it all updated. 
> 
> As always, deep love to all of you that take the time to read my fic(s) and comment! Your support and feedback means the absolute world to me, and highkey keeps the motivation going strong especially during times when all I wanna do is curl up in a corner and curse out writer's block. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I did, when it was all said and done. lol


	6. part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Janai reunites with an old friend and eventually finds out what Kazi and Amaya have been up to.

Janai’s preparation for an inconspicuous outing at the market is simple. 

It’s only a few steps: remove the spaulders and cape, secure her Golden Knight’s crown inside a well tailored satchel that hugs against the natural curve of her back, and shrug into an unremarkable cloak over the remaining armor before tugging the hood over to insert her horns through the twin slotted openings. 

The rusted red coloring of the summerweight cotton fabric is just long enough to conceal the tunic’s scaling and most of the subtle shine from the metal of her greaves. The commonplace item allows her to blend in easily among the citizens from any angle other than head-on. It’s far from an illusion but it serves just fine; the golden rays cascading over cheekbones catch the light easily and proudly betray her identity regardless.

Thankfully when she appears in public dressed like this, the majority of Lux Aurea’s people respect her unspoken need to _be_.

The ones who do recognize her at a closer glance tamp down their forwardness of calling out her name for the entirety of everyone to hear, instead choosing to whisper a greeting before finding ways to impart discreet, fleeting touches to the textiles of her clothing.

She can’t fault them; it’s considered good luck to be in the presence of one who is Sun-touched, and doubly so to be in the vicinity of the Golden Knight - the one who cleaves apart the darkness with her Sunforged sword. Her presence alone is considered a blessing of protection among the people. 

Even as she slips among the crowds occasionally feeling the sensation of those currying unspoken favor, she is steadfast in navigating the bustling alleyways to her favorite vendors: Lady Aster, the spice and tea merchant that always seemed to anticipate her arrival. Odrin, the retired warrior turned baker who always seemed more kin than former soldier under the Golden Knight’s authority. And lastly Kaurlac, the blacksmith with as much steel in her spine as the metal she molded expertly under her hands.

No matter the time of her outings, even in the early crisp mornings such as this one, they always begin at Lady Aster’s. 

Janai sweeps the intricate woven threads hanging from the doorway’s entrance with a gentle brush of her hand, breathing in the familiar scents as she steps onto well worn tiling.

Citrus sharpness of ceylon and pleasant maltiness of assam are the first to greet her. The strong traces of cinnamon and pepper come soon after, and delicate nuances of rose petals and safflowers wrap around her senses like an old friend to guide her further in where tips of curving horns bobbed behind the main counter. 

A quick glance about the interior shows a surprising lack of patrons except for the small piles of currency stacked next to empty teaware. Her lips twitch upwards at the sheer luck. Some private, uninterrupted quality time with Aster and her words of wisdom were much needed.

She’s just reached the expanse of stools lined up beside the wrap-around oaken bartop before Aster’s voice calls out to her.

“You’ve been back in the city for almost a week, and this is the first visit to my humble shop? I was beginning to wonder if I should be offended.” Glass and ceramic jars clink against each other out of sight as the woman continues to rummage through the storage underneath. “What’s the excuse? That human of yours running circles around the great and fearsome Golden Knight?”

“Good morning, Aster,” Janai greets warmly. “Would you believe me if I told you I’m swearing off tea and maybe that’s perhaps why I’ve been avoiding you?” 

Aster finally pops up from kneeling, beyond sprightly for her age, meeting Janai’s falsely dry gaze head on with a smirk that promises no holds barred. The pine and sage green of the woman’s tunic accentuate the youthful mischief in her amber eyes. “Your declination of a good tea is as likely as the Sun disappearing,” she chuckles. “It’s good to see you, love. And she _must_ be running you ragged, ‘cause you look like shit. Let me brew you a cup.” Gnarled hands decorated with slender rings of silver and turquoise gemstones touch upon Janai’s to squeeze gently right before disappearing again.

“You’re the brightest light of my day thus far, Aster. It’s always pleasant spending time with you.” Janai sidesteps the jab, settling for watching as the elder flits about the interior mumbling delightfully about snagging the ‘good set’ from its resting place in a well-hidden cupboard and turning to gently coax a sleeping flame to life from the embers. 

Even with a lack of conversation between the two of them, the air of the tea shop buzzes with life and sound. 

The delicate clinking of copper measuring spoons against glass while Aster hums a soft tune tending to measuring out dried leaves. The gurgling sounds of bubbling water, steam clouding the air with a fine mist. Metal wind chimes sway with the light breeze next to the opened windows, tingling pleasant ringing tones.

The bustle of footsteps against stone walkways filter through. Muted excited chatter of adults and children alike as they go about their day. Merchants calling out to entice the nearest passerby to sell their wares.

They’re all...extraordinarily ordinary occurrences. 

Janai rests her chin atop her palm and smothers a small smile into the skin. It’s in the moments like these where she can nearly achieve shucking the mantles of both princess and knight. The most welcomed and comforting feeling of normalcy settles on her shoulders, wholly stripped of royal titles and expectations. 

It’s a wistful illusion that will linger about until she exits the teahouse, but for now she is content to close her eyes and revel in it for as long as possible. 

“I know that the two of you have only been around each other not too long but surely she can’t be running you that ragged,” Aster’s voice gently prods, albeit teasingly. “You know...the offer of seeking solace in the extra guest room upstairs still stands, if you ever need a getaway.”

It’s a friendly proposal, one deeply rooted in Janai’s past long before she walked the ceremonial coming-of-age path. She’s only accepted the extension a handful of times throughout the years and the reminders cause her heart to twinge painfully at deep-cutting stings of familial loss. Aster had always been there for her, kindly stepping into a passive maternal frame to offer her own unique form of love and support.

“Thank you, but this is one thing I can’t turn away from.” Janai cracks an eye open, watching Aster having moved on to deftly level quantities of herbs on pristine brass scales. 

Aster lets out a low whistle. “I can only imagine,” she soothes, a crooning tone that reminds Janai fondly of memories of her grandmother. “It’s been the recurring theme of discussion here, I’m sure you’re aware. All this talk of a human being subjected to the Light and being found ‘worthy’. After all these centuries, it’s quite amazing, really-”

“It wasn’t supposed to happen like that,” Janai interjects, cupping her face behind her hands to hide the roiling shame. “She just...I was so frustrated with her during the interrogation. And then she was so _crass_ when she told me to shove a sword up my--,” Janai huffs with a pained groan. 

“Shove a sword up your…?”

“Nevermind that detail - a story for another time.” Janai’s hands slide down her cheeks, threatening to smear the paint down with them. “I acted out of clouded judgment and anger. I whisked her off out of the dungeons and forced her to kneel before Khessa’s throne to _intimidate her_ , to get the upper hand, all without giving pause to what _could have happened_.”

Aster merely stays quiet, a silent offer to continue. 

Janai exhales, the sound dark and deep as if the physical weight of guilt pressed upon her lungs. “General Amaya isn’t the one running me ragged, it’s...I've lost countless hours of sleep thinking about those possible outcomes -- the thoughts even plague my dreams, spoiling them into rot. All I can think of is what if she’d been permanently blinded. If the plea for warrior’s honor was tossed to the side. If Khessa had decided to remove her hands due to her insolence, or go through with the execution regardless.” 

Her teeth worry at the curve of her lip, the distress bubbling up and threatening to vent out much like the tea kettles around them. Causing harm of such level to Amaya could have been catastrophic, even if the Standing Battalion never knew the outcome of their beloved general’s fate since the destruction of the Breach’s cliffside path. 

Even for such a strong individual...if Amaya lived but was maimed beyond repair, the possibility of her psyche shattering would have been an incredibly gutting consequence. If she had been executed--by Janai’s hand at Khessa’s order--and word was somehow carried across the winds to Katolis, it could have easily sparked fierce retaliation with further bloodshed. It would not have mattered if the way across was decimated; if the will for vengeance was strong enough, an invention to bridge the gap would have been inevitable.

The diverging threads of events always weave their way into her dreams, quickly poisoning her rest into fitful night terrors. Seeing Amaya’s face contorted with heart wrenching anguish and the beginnings of a wraith-like scream is always the last thing she sees before waking up drenched in cold sweat.

“You feel guilty, even though it didn’t arrive at any of those outcomes?”

Janai’s fingers steeple together, contemplative thoughts pinging off of each other. “Yes, but more fearful that I will not be so lucky in the future if I fail to make the right decision,” she whispers, as if Fate has an ear in her direction.

Lady Aster is quiet. Far too quiet, that it makes Janai apprehensive for the words of wisdom she so desperately sought. The elder just stares unseeingly at an unknown focal point, surely finding and drawing answers from an abyss only she could return from. When she finally breaks the silence, her voice is as soft and delicate as the rose petals in her hands.

“We cannot fixate on what is done, Janai. We can only surrender to the lesson that is being offered to us, comprehend its meaning and learn from it. Only then can we take the darkened oppressive feelings of regret, guilt, fear, and anger and transform them into the untethered light of wisdom, understanding, and love. 

"These nightmares that you’re having...the emotional vulnerability you’re experiencing from them is not a weakness. It’s a boon. This vulnerability is the core of innovation, creation, and change.” She casts her eyes into Janai’s direction, but her visage is glassy - staring _through_ the Golden Knight rather than seeing her. “This woman, General Amaya. She’s at the forefront of your thoughts, even as you sleep. What is it about her that’s calling out to your subconscious?”

“She’s damn near everything I thought she would be, but not in the ways I expected.” The words come unbidden, as if pulled from Janai's throat. Slipped from an iron tight grip hellbent on keeping all secrets under lock and key.

The admission catches them both by surprise. Janai’s brows crease with furrowed confusion, mystified, as Aster blinks away the haze from her amber irises.

“Such a cryptic choice of words. Hmm.” Aster willingly abandons all tasks of weighing, turning around to lean her hip against the counter. Janai’s on edge: fingers mindlessly tapping on wood, body noticeably vibrating from a leg shaking just out of sight. The restlessness is so uncanny, it makes her own fingers twitch and want to grab hold of anything tangible.

“I just mean, she’s...” Janai trails off hesitantly, gathering her thoughts. “My scouts would bring back stories of a militant general so fierce, it seemed that everyone --even the earth-- would part before them to make way. Human captives spat at my soldiers' feet, boasting how that same general would find them - dead or alive - and bring their broken bodies back home. This person gave them such confidence, their loyalty stood unshakeable even as they drew their last breath.” She shakes her head, the memory freshly stunning her.

“I would lay in my cot at night piecing together images from all these collected stories. I’d envision a warrior clad in bloodied steel, their height towering above me, grinning with bloodlust and dead eyes. It would haunt me, every time reports came back of loss on both sides. I knew our meeting would be inevitable.

“Imagine my surprise when we finally came face to face and I realized it was _her_. And then--she’s--and now she’s _here_. Unshackled. Found pure of heart. She’s the fearsome warrior I imagined but with cunningly bright eyes and cocksure smile, she’s infuriatingly hard headed to the point where it can almost be labeled as brave, and Kazi! Even Kazi finds something about the woman that’s magnetic, despite _everything_. I can see it in their eyes, and it’s making me question if there’s something that I myself am blind to!”

“Keep going,” Aster encourages. “Give that much needed voice to your thoughts - You might possibly find that addressing them, taking them head on - may help you regain control over those dreams of yours. And you clearly have a lot on your mind, so...no time like the present.”

Janai chokes out a scoff, eyes widening in shock at the sound of it. The building intensity and fire in her voice sputters. “I cannot possibly--”

“If you don’t seize the opportunity of talking with me, the epitome of non-judgement, practically a patron saint of wanderers and their troubles, who would you rather turn to and discuss this with? Your sister, our Radiant Queen? Suri, who serves as her third ear and eye?” Aster barks a laugh, all the while pouring the finally brewed liquid into a nearby cup. “May the Sun shine down upon their backs but I don’t think you’d want to share your thoughts about this human - _your_ human - with them.”

Aster’s first initial response from the knight is a grumble that sounds remarkably like _she’s not mine_. The second is a whispered, “Thank you for the tea,” as Janai accepted the cup with a contented sigh, letting the ceramic warm her palms and soothe her blood.

“Lapsang souchong from a band of Earthblood elves. Drink up, dear. The caffeine boost will do you well.” She waits as Janai takes the first sip, humming knowingly when Janai nods her head in approval. “Whenever you’re ready, love,” she urges on gently.

Janai’s heart and mind creak open their well-guarded defenses and the words begin to come forth in the same way a green-horned soldier navigates a pockmarked battlefield for the first time. 

_Terribly._

''''''

The lights in the establishment are dimmed and the ‘Open’ sign has been long flipped hours ago.

Aster ends up sitting upon the stool next to Janai, shoulder touching shoulder, cradling a glass half full of liquor rather than her own usual blend of tea. Janai’s original cup stands empty and pushed off to the side, abandoned for her own small dram of whiskey. They take a sip simultaneously, sharing a hiss at the burn that crawls like molasses down their throats. 

The shopkeep breathes through the slide of liquid flame, eeking out, “Well, I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Neither was I, honestly,” Janai admits with a pained squint. The whiskey glass tips on its axis in her grip, the rest of the liquid disappearing with a single swallow. “I’m still not sure what to make of it.”

“I, for once, am glad I don’t have a rival. Plenty of competition in my line of business, yes, but no rival on a level such as that. Having to deal with the fact you’re both equally responsible for sowing death and destruction among each other’s ranks?” Aster whistles low, “That’s rough. Wanting to get to know her despite the complex history you’re both entwined in? Truly diabolical.”

“It’s a terrible idea, isn’t it,” Janai sighs. “I feel Grandmothers Aditi and Kami would be so disappointed with me.”

“Disappointed?” The statement brings Aster to pause, reflecting deeply upon it. “Your grandmothers...I think they would have been rather impressed at some facet in this entire situation. Yes, they were always vocal and _quite opinionated_ about a multitude of things, but they always instructed you to follow your instincts and they would beam with pride at the judgement you would show. Perhaps this is an unprecedented opportunity. But...still proceed with caution.”

The gap of quiet contemplation is just enough to notice the commotion taking place outside the shop’s walls, jovial chatter turning into uneasy gossip. As if the energy had shifted to something...unusual. Worrisome.

Janai shifts in her seat, training her hearing beyond the door. 

_“Who’s fighting in the square? I’m betting on--”_

_“Did you see her up close? She seems so fragile though.”_

_“I thought he was about to punch their lights out!”_

_“Where are the guards? Wouldn’t they want to intervene?”_  
_“Who’d want to get involved with that? Stepping in sounds like a foolproof way to get--”_

_“Did you hear what he said to Kazi, though! It looked like they were about to start shaking!”_

The mention of the interpreter has her rocking the stool backwards into a tip. “Aster, I--”

_“Go.”_

Janai nimbly pulls the hood over her head in a smooth motion before quickly disappearing beyond the fabric, red threading vanishing immediately into similar chromatics.

Aster sighs, gaze landing on the empty and forgotten tea cup that Janai had drank from and picks it up with a delicate touch. The miniscule dregs of leaves and herbs lay forgotten at the bottom of the ceramic, never moving even as she rotates the cup in her grasp. She takes a long hard pause, deciphering and listening intently to the whispers they offer.

“Fate has a strange way of guiding you, my friend,” Aster murmurs into the air. “So incredibly strange.”

‘’’’’’

Any and all befuddled haze from drinking with Aster clears as soon as she focuses on the side conversations and rumors, dashing in following the verbal trails to her intended target. 

Janai pulls the hooded cloak tighter about her shoulders, continuing to weave and dodge her way through the crowds. She ignores the agitated calls of passerbys as they shout for her to slow down, elderly men shaking their fists when she knocks shoulders with a group harder than intended. She bites down calling after an apology; if they hear her voice, her meager disguise would fall apart.

She darts through an opening between the dense forest of bodies at the top of the stairway’s landing and immediately lays eyes upon the woman involved.

Janai’s breath catches in her chest.

General Amaya and one of the merchants _are_ indeed fighting it out in the plaza’s square, but it’s far from what she had imagined. 

What she thought would be an annihilation of bloodied blows and bruised egos in the scurried panic over dissipates.

This is a performance. An absolute one-sided game of tag.

Amaya’s fighting form is different from the likes she has ever witnessed before during their skirmishes: where once Amaya was all steel, fiery stares, and a defensible tower of muscle and cunning, here Amaya moves like water, a constant and graceful flow. 

She effortlessly ducks the merchant’s endeavors at grabbing her, dancing about his figure and sidestepping any and all attempts of ham-fisted punches and sluggish sweeps of a thick leg trying to trip her. His breaths are ragged as he continues to swing his hands, all in desperation of having her submit. His movements are wild, arcing wide and flailing.

Each of his physical exertions are countered easily and met with a grin, all punctuated with a challenging raise of an eyebrow, asking the man _is this really the best you can do?_

She’s reading his movements with unblinking - _equally smiling_ \- eyes, laughing with a stance of ease as she manipulates him, now more of a giant bumbling child than man. Her hands are tucked behind the small of her back, except for when the merchant swings too far and threatens to smash into a bystander, where she darts forwards to tug a strong grip at the hanging slack of his belt to pull him back into the center of the plaza’s eye. She ducks under the elbow and backfist that flings her way, letting go of the belt and watching him stagger-step off balance.

It’s mesmerizing, seeing this masterful command of spatial awareness. The Sun shines down upon her form and the sheer joy and amusement of being able to move freely matches the Sun’s strength. The brightness illuminates the subtle flares of Katolian clothing, the yellow threads catching in the light. 

Janai looks beyond the pair, and seeing Kazi on the sidelines with darting, worrying glances as they twist their hands about is enough to break the spell.

_“Enough!”_

Citizens startle at the booming, commanding voice, gasping and skittering away once they realize that the Golden Knight is in their midst. They immediately part to make way as Janai begins to stalk closer to the fighting pair.

The sudden shift of movement around them is enough to catch Amaya’s attention, tracking the figure coming down the steps towards their area. The flickers of gold and crimson of familiar uniform underneath the opening of the cloak capture her focus, and her eyes flash with recognition.

The merchant deliberately fails to heed the warning, attempting to sneak in a cheap shot at the General while she was momentarily distracted - but the human’s peripheral sight is far more superior.

In the split second, two things happen.

Janai breaks free from the edge of the crowd and surges forward. Amaya ducks under the swinging arm once more, twisting her body around to slip underneath and behind, away from his vicinity. They seem to switch places instantaneously, a stunning dance of choreography that speaks volumes.

Janai’s _quick_ , taking control of the situation as she enters the space. She immediately redirects the merchant’s arm downwards with a strong slap of her palm against his forearm before grabbing and wrapping her fist into the loose sleeves to wrench his arm backwards into a pin against the slope of his back. Using the continuous momentum against his larger frame, a swift and calculated push of her foot below his knee sends him crashing into a kneel onto the ground.

“I said that’s _enough_ ,” she growls into his ear.

He hisses at the pain, snarling just as harshly and trying to wrench his arm out of this newcomer’s grasp. When he turns to look at the interrupting offender, his face quickly turns ashen and sickly. “G-Golden Knight, I--”

“Did I give you permission to speak--,” she slides her gaze to the medallion about his neck, “-- High Artisan Paccano?” Janai takes pleasure in the way his complexion turns a shade of green, watching his head jerk side to side emphatically. “I didn’t think so,” she darkly whispers to him. “Now when I release your arm, you’re going to stand up and walk to the side. And you will stand there obediently, quietly, until I address you further. Do you understand?”

“Y-yes, Golden Knight, I understand.”

“Good.” She relinquishes her grip, standing tall and towering as she shifts the hood back down to rest across her shoulders before reaching to her lower back for her crown’s satchel. All eyes are on her as she releases the item from its confinement, fitting the adornment back onto her horns. With the Golden Knight's mantle back in place, Janai quickly sets to work, calling out orders for willing witnesses to assemble. 

When she turns, Amaya and Janai seamlessly make eye contact even as the crowd around them begins to disperse and regulate with the new conditions, filtering between the two of them like water between steadfast rock faces. There’s a short burst of nonverbal checking in: Janai scans her for any bodily damage, leaning forward with a brow tensed to ask _are you harmed?_ Amaya simply answers with a subtle shake of her head and ghost of a wink, refusing to wipe away the sheen of sweat that clings to her hairline and choosing to rest her hands on the flares of her hipbones.

The moment between them ends just as quickly when Amaya’s line of sight shifts past Janai’s shoulder.

“Golden Knight Janai, I--” the familiar voice filters from behind her. Janai swiftly turns and holds up a palm, sharply shaking her head. She looks to Kazi with pursed lips, the disappointment transparent on her features.

It’s enough to make Kazi shrink back in admonishment. The sadness and anxiety is radiating from their frame as they hesitate at Janai’s unspoken warning. Yet a spark of boldness appears in their eyes even as they whisper, “It wasn’t her fault.”

Janai blinks, cataloging the assertiveness. “That remains yet to be seen, even if you offer your reputation of word. I will ask you for your statement when it is time.” She takes a step closer, whispering low and privately. “Go to Lady Aster’s. I’ll meet you both there when I am done questioning the witnesses, and then you and I will talk.”

Kazi presses a fist to their chest, nodding with a slight bow to their head as Janai steps away. _“General Amaya, if you would please follow me.”_ Amaya acknowledges the request with a subtle turn of her head, but her eyes are still locked on Janai’s frame, following the woman’s trajectory away from the pair and towards the crowd. _“Please,”_ Kazi implores. _“We have to get out of the public’s eye while this is being taken care of.”_

She concedes and they fall into step together, Kazi avoiding the people’s direct gazes with furtive looks to the cobblestones as opposed to Amaya looking ahead with chin held high. The scholar staves off questioning bystanders away with an apologetic nod and wave, guiding Amaya through the parting rivers of citizens.

_“Should I go back and strongarm him into submission for an apology? He deserves something for trying to grab at you.”_

Kazi huffs a laugh, wagging a slender finger. _“We may not have known each other for long, but I know you well enough to realize that if I had joked about wishing harm on him, you would follow through on your word.”_ Their shoulders fall the slightest amount, tiredness seeping into their bones weighing heavy from the merchant’s words. _“He deserves many things, but physical violence may not be the best avenue of choice.”_

Amaya makes a soft noise, closer to a long exhale than a low hum. She bumps shoulders with Kazi’s own, looking at them with a concerned gaze. _“Do you want to talk about what happened back there? Your body language when he was speaking to you had me worried.”_

_“As exhausting as that experience will be, yes. I do. You deserve to know. But perhaps we should wait until we get to the shop? There are far too many eyes on us and I’d rather we not draw another audience.”_

_“Understood. Let’s pick up the pace then. I can’t wait to be ‘all ears’.”_ Amaya gives a cheeky side-glance, grinning when Kazi snorts and tips their head back in disbelieving wonder.

_“That joke was terrible.”_

''''

_“Why would she send us to a tea shop that’s closed?”_ Amaya signs, gesturing to the engraved piece of wood laying against the window.

 _“I’m not entirely sure, but we have no choice. Either we follow instructions or stay out here against the wall, subjecting ourselves to even further scrutiny.”_ Kazi shrugs with a dejected sigh, pushing their glasses up higher. _“Give me one moment, if you please. Try not to wander, General.”_

Amaya's shoulders shake with a quiet laugh. _“I will do my best, but if I happen to vanish from your sight, be rest assured that you’d be able to locate me quickly. I stick out like a sore thumb here.”_

_“General Amaya, it’s important that - especially after this event - that we best exhibit good behavior--”_

_“Kazi. Breathe. I was joking with you,”_ she placates the interpreter with softened gestures. _“I’ll stay right here. Go on in.”_

With a muttered _good, that’s good_ to themselves, Kazi steps past the threshold, allowing the silkened fabric of the hanging tapestries to glide against their body. “Lady Aster, are you present?”

It’s silent for only a moment before the rustle of footsteps against aged wood and stone is heard. Aster appears from behind a sliding false panel from the far corner of the room, surprised at the newfound company. “Kazi? I wasn’t expecting you until later this week. Has something happened to my plants?”

“Oh, no - nothing of the sort. Your shipment is still on time, as planned and promised.” They shift on their feet uneasily, glancing towards the entrance as if the wooden door would shut behind the fabric at any second. “I’m terribly sorry to bother you, Lady Aster; it’s just...we were instructed to come here but your sign says your establishment is closed, and the lights in here are dimmed, and-”

 _“We?”_ Aster’s eyes slide from Kazi to the window, hoping to chance a glance at the awaiting individual. “You brought company? Well, bring them on in. I won’t have them left alone out there like some shunned beast.”

They exit, offering a sheepish smile to the elder upon their return. Aster stands stock-still when the human, the formidable General Amaya enters warily into her shop and humble abode, eyes immediately locking onto the elder Sunfire elf. _Oh,_ is the only thing that comes to mind as the act is mirrored; she takes her time in assessing the General’s posture, mentally ticking her observances down as she visually takes the woman in.

Kazi smiles reassuringly to the both of them. “Lady Aster, may I introduce to you General Amaya. General Amaya, Lady Aster.” 

Amaya’s eyes calmly turn from Kazi’s signing hands to Aster, who took a step forward with a hand extended out in greeting. It’s only a heartbeat’s span before Amaya warmly clasps the softened palm with her battle-calloused grip. 

“How fortuitous it is that we are able to meet, General Amaya.”

_“Likewise, Lady Aster. You have a lovely establishment here.”_

“That's rather sweet of you. Flattering words will keep you in my good graces," she grins cheekily. "Please make yourselves comfortable,” Aster croons, gesturing to the plush cushioned seating. “I’ll get a fresh pot started and we can enjoy each other’s company as we wait for Janai’s arrival.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *fingerguns*  
> Part 2 gets good.
> 
> 2020's been a really odd year for us all, hasn't it?  
> Thanks for sticking around, fam. Stay safe out there.


End file.
